Orchard Park resident George Chernowski is 81 years old and a man who loves to run.
"I've run, I don't know, like 950 days in a row or something. I kind of lose track,” he said.
Chernowski also loves to serve his community and church family at Nativity of Our Lord School in Orchard Park.
"Our pastor said to me: 'George, I'm going to need you to go up to the pulpit again, to talk to the congregation about donating to help our students.'"
Chernowski was able to combine those two passions recently, when he completed the Wineglass Marathon in Corning.
“I was a little bit of a celebrity right away when they found out that I'm 81 years old,” he joked.
But it wasn’t just the satisfaction of being the oldest runner and completing the marathon. He raised over $15,000 for families at the Nativity school who can’t afford to pay tuition.
“My arches were really sore, but the joy of finishing, knowing that all of these people were backing me because the people in Nativity have contributed a really decent amount of money toward this tuition warrior plan,” Chernowski said.
Chernowski said donations surpassed the expected goal, but the fundraising hasn't stopped.
Additional donations are still coming in, and he said many have personally sent him money towards the cause.
"I have to believe that we're $2,000 or $3,000 beyond our goal now," he said.
Chernowksi stays active at 81 not only by running, but he also teaches at Trocaire College and works at Runners Roost.
So what keeps George going? He says it's his late wife of 56 years, Mary Ann.
"Without her, with her home with God instead of with me, it's a lonely world," he said. "So the more I can be with other people, the better I feel. I love teaching, and I love running.
"She said to me about three days before God called her home. She said to me: 'You'll be OK.' She said: 'I'll be OK, and you'll be OK. It'll just be a different OK.' I said: 'How am I going to be OK?' And she said: 'You'll have your teaching, you'll have your running, you'll have Runners Roost, so you'll be OK.'"
For Chernowski, staying active, reflecting on cherished memories with loved ones, teaching, helping families get their tuition paid for, and serving is all rooted in one thing.
“The fact that we can not only be closer to Christ ourselves, but help other people be closer to Christ," he said. "I mean, what's better than that?"
