Meet Our Detroit Free Press Marathon Runners!
The Detroit Free Press Marathon is fast approaching, and we are delighted to have two of our officers (ordained pastors) running in support of our Fresh Start to Freedom campaign. Funds raised will benefit survivors of human trafficking as they embark on a fresh start, whether that means buying a new refrigerator, assisting in paying for utilities, or counseling. Let’s meet our runners for this year!
Andy Barylski has been involved with The Salvation Army since he was 16 years old and currently leads the Wayne/Westland Corps Community Center. He ran the full marathon in the Detroit Free Press Marathon of 2011, but is just recently getting back into the habit of running. He and his wife will be running the 5k together this year. When asked about what motivates him to run, he said, “I checked something off my bucket list in 2011 by running the full marathon. Now, it’s all about supporting the mission of The Salvation Army as it works against the effects of human trafficking.”
A runner who has earned her stripes, Shannon Martinez has been a Salvation Army officer for 13 years and pastors the Dearborn Heights Corps Community Center with her husband, David. She has run several half marathons, and ran the full Indy Mini Marathon. Though all races were cancelled last year due to COVID-19, Shannon took a challenge to run 2,020 miles during the year of 2020. Both the love of running and The Salvation Army’s work will fuel her during the half marathon this year. “I love the unique experience offered by the location of every race I’ve run,” she says, “and to support our anti-human trafficking efforts this year is extra motivation. The Salvation Army has fought against human trafficking for decades, and part of my work as an officer has been to raise awareness for the issue.”
Want to support the Fresh Start to Freedom effort? Sign up for the marathon and then go to our fundraising page to either become a fundraiser or support one of our runners.