Helping others motivates runner

For Josh Rosen, it takes more than physical training to complete an ultra marathon.

“When you get to about 35 miles your brain really wants to shut you down,” the Mentor man says. “Having something to run for is what really keeps you going.”

The active athlete plans to participate in a run benefitting Project Hope for the Homeless of Lake County later this year. In 2019 he’s looking to gather support for Leadership Lake County and their youth program by running a 100-mile ultra marathon.

As a recent participant in Leadership Lake County, Rosen said “One of things I saw is that there are so many needs in Lake County. I’d like to get as many other runners involved (in helping), too.”

And he recently embraced another humanitarian effort

Rosen, who works as a vice-present for Cornerstone IT in Mentor, said that he and his wife Marisa had talked about having children one day and now have decided to follow the path of adoption. A native of Newbury Township, Rosen grew up with two adopted siblings from Korea and said that it was a positive and beneficial experience.

He noted that the couple chose to apply for a child in Africa because the current need on the continent is “huge.” In sub-Saharan Africa, 12 percent of all children are orphans, compared with 6.5 percent in Asia and 5 percent in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to UNICEF.

Working with an international Christian adoption agency named All God’s Children, the Rosens are hoping that within three to six months a child from Burundi, an African country bordered by Rwanda and Tanzania, will be theirs. They began the intensive adoption process about two years ago.

“It’s tough to wait but we know that waiting is an important part of it,” he said. “Now it’s just waiting and knowing it will come when it is supposed to come.”

During their wait they’ve studied information about the environment of orphaned children in Burundi in order to best prepare for the child’s transition to a very different way of life once he or she arrives in the U.S.

Throughout their research they also became keenly aware of the need for food and other life-sustaining supplies for the millions of impoverished African orphans.

In order to assist with their plight Rosen used his platform as an ultra marathon runner during a 50mile Beast of Burden Ultrarun on Aug. 4 in Lockport, New York, to raise funds for children in Rubongi, Uganda.

Rosen remains steadfast on his mission of helping others and believes that others who choose to do so should employ methods most suitable to them.

“The biggest thing is people should use the platform they have…to make an impact on other peoples’ lives,” he said. “If we can help just one orphan, someone struggling or (the) community, it will all be worth it.”

For more information on Rosen’s endeavors, visit www.josh-rosen.com.

SUBMITTED Marisa and Josh Rosen of Mentor are raising funds to assist the needy children in Africa through their running efforts. They’re also in the process of adopting a child from Africa.