When the bullhorn sounded at the start line for the Ocean Drive Marathon, runner number 284 took off wearing an orange shirt with the words “Run, Rabbi, Run!” on the back. On the front of the shirt was the text “Yeshiva at the Jersey Shore (YJS).” The runner was Rabbi Elie Tuchman, the head of YJS and this was his first marathon.
As Tuchman ran each of the 26.2 miles through the scenic barrier islands of Cape May County, he raised money for YJS tuition assistance. Although donations are still being accepted, he has already raised more than $8,500, at a rate of about $327 a mile.
The race enabled Tuchman to realize two dreams at once—completing a marathon, and raising critical scholarship funds. The rabbi trained for four months, logging thousands of treadmill miles at home and at the Jewish Community Center in Deal, and hitting the streets around his home in Passaic on Sundays.
“I run for my own health, but I thought if I was going to put myself through this personal challenge, I wanted to make it meaningful and help others in the process,” said Rabbi Tuchman, 43, who recently earned a doctorate of education from Yeshiva University’s Azrieli Graduate School of Jewish Education and Administration. “My true loves are Jewish education and YJS. We want to continue to make it possible for everyone to get a Jewish education because it’s the key to the future of the Jewish people.”
He finished the race in 5 hours and 39 minutes, through frigid, windy weather and light snow flurries. Cheers from his family and spectators along the route helped keep him on course.
The morning after the race, he trudged into school although his muscles were screaming with each step. “I am in enormous discomfort and pain. It takes a big toll on your body,” he said. “I keep a gallon of water on my desk to keep myself hydrated, but also because it hurts too much to keep getting up for refills.”
“Pain and anguish were not in the job description when Tuchman was hired to lead the school in 2006,” said YJS board president Sydney Lekach of Oakhurst.
“Rabbi Tuchman’s run shows his extreme level of commitment and dedication to YJS. It is so gratifying to see him, as well as his entire staff, go the extra mile to ensure YJS offers a progressive, top notch education,” Lekach said.
Tuchman earned the kudos of JCC members who watched his progress in the fitness center. “Only a very small percentage of the general population can run a marathon,” said JCC’s assistant executive director Randi Freed Cohen, who has completed 10 marathons herself. “I applaud him for using his effort and time toward raising money for what he has dedicated his life to—Jewish education.”
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A graduate of Boston University’s College of Communication, Jill Garbi is a freelance writer and editor.
