Mr. Lewis Sees Friendly SJCS Faces During Race

By Gabe Lewis
Director of Mission and Ministry

About six and a half years ago, two SJCS dads -- Robert Sullivan and Josh Lane -- got me out to the YMCA at 5:30 AM for a six-mile run. I had no idea how much it would change my life. I just remember being really sore that day, but also really happy.

Since that fateful Wednesday, running has helped bring a kind of balance to my life and mind that has been essential as I navigate parenting four young children while teaching and leading at St. Joseph's. It makes sense why St. Paul compared the drama of life in Christ to running a race (2 Timothy 4:7).
 

This was on my heart on Saturday, April 12 as I competed with five friends in the Ville to Ville Relay race from Asheville to Greenville. We were team WR@D (We Run At Dawn, the name of our informal morning run group). It was not the first time I ran in the race, but this year I was especially aware of different faces from St. Joseph's whom I met along the way.

Ville to Ville is a relay in which teams of six divide up 12 legs, ranging from four to nine miles, and race along winding roads through the hills from Asheville to Hampton Station in Greenville. All along the route, I ran into people connected to St. Joe's in one way or another.

Teams start as early as 5:30 AM or as late as 8:30 AM. Right away, at the 8:30 starting line, I ran into St. Joe's girls cross country and track coach Victoria Hammersmith. If you know Victoria, you won't be surprised to learn that she was on one of the fastest teams on the roads that day, an all-female team that finished second overall, holding a 6-minute, 17-second pace for 72 miles!
 

At one of the next relay points, I ran into three St. Joe's graduates who were on the same team: James Clemence, Anthony Cinquemani and Emily Cinquemani. 

James Clemence ('19) attended Purdue University and graduated in 2023 with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. He is working as a project manager for J Francis builders but is eager to get back into engineering when the time is right.
 

Anthony Cinquemani ('19) attended Cornell University and graduated in 2023 with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is working in product development at Master Power Transmission.
 

Emily Cinquemani ('11) earned her BA in English from Elon University in 2015 and then an MFA in Creative Writing from UNC Greensboro in 2018. She is the poetry instructor in the creative writing department at the Governor’s School. She also is an accomplished and very well published poet.

A few stops later, I ran into St. Joe's dad Matt Uzas. Matt's son, Hampton, is in the seventh grade, and Matt's team, Fat & Hoppy, finished fourth in the Men's Masters category! Matt and I have run many miles together, and it was great to see him out on the roads.
 

For my second leg, I changed into my St. Joe's singlet (on lend from cross country Coach George Carr), and another St. Joe's dad saw the jersey at the leg 10/11 interchange and asked if I was his kids' theology teacher. I've taught two of Scott Baker's amazing children in freshman theology and loved meeting him in downtown Travelers Rest in the middle of Ville to Ville.
 

Running forges unexpected connections between people. One of my recent running friends is Charlie Woodward, the boys cross country coach and veteran history teacher at Christ Church Episcopal School. It was great to see Charlie at the finish line, just as I often see him on our campus for cross country meets.
 

While I did not cross paths with her, Mary Okuley, mother of four current St. Joe’s students, also ran a great race with her really fun team!
 

At the after-party, as most teams were finishing up, I was overjoyed to run into Mike and Susan Cinquemani, parents of Anthony and Emily, whom I mentioned earlier.

Mike and Susan were an incredible support to me as a young teacher, and the Cinquemanis (see photo at top) were a role model family to my wife and I. They are obviously so proud of the amazing people their children have become in the years since they graduated from St. Joseph's. 

Of course, the best part was being able to run the 12th and final leg and having my two oldest children chase me down for the final 100 meters and cross the finish line with me and my team.
 

I was very grateful on that Saturday, not least of all for the community of St. Joseph's that I - and my family - are called to be a part of.

PHOTO GALLERY

VILLE TO VILLE RELAY RESULTS
 

Carter Dausen Takes Second in 5K

That same weekend, SJCS sophomore Carter Dausen placed second in the Tunnel to Towers 5K in Greenville. Carter (photo below, courtesy SCRunners.com) was runner-up out of 157 finishers with a time of 18:03.

Click HERE for complete results on SCRunners.com.