Racing For Flint

I can’t stop thinking about Flint, Michigan.  It’s been over four years since Flint residents have thrived without water or have endured with the lead poisoned water that has flowed through every single pipe in the city. This crisis is more than just the availability of water.  It’s the politics around the crisis and the damaged infrastructure that held this water still in operation.  It is the long term effects of lead poisoning that our youth will suffer from this crisis.  While a few individuals are being held responsible for allowing this to go on this long, I personally cannot idly stand by.  I want to focus on the solutions that I can control...marathons.

My name is Ron Johnson from Brooklyn, NY, by way of the Midwest (Michigan and Ohio) and a University of Michigan Alum #GoBlue. I work in digital advertising and serve as a small business consultant and am the Marketing Director for the University of Michigan Black Alumni Association. I’m also an avid traveling marathon runner.

Marathons attract thousands of participants and audiences across the country.  It’s a very empowering experience, running past the crowds of people cheering to push on and finish the race strong. The support is overwhelming and humbling, even for a moment, on an early Sunday morning.

The marathon platform is utilized often to bring awareness of thousands of causes everyday.  I would like to use my platform and my passion for running as a vehicle to bring awareness to Flint, Michigan.  Just as I receive tons of support from people I do not know, I would like to ‘pay it forward’ to the People of Flint who are running their own marathon.  Although I may not live in Flint or have experienced their journey, I want them to know they are being cheered for during their marathon and we want to see the city finish strong.

ALL PROCEEDS WILL GO TOWARDS THE WORKING NONPROFIT IN FLINT, MICHIGAN.