John Curcio’s 100-Mile Ride Benefits YMCA Members
LIMERICK PA – John Curcio plans to travel a hundred miles in a single day, March 1 (2023; Wednesday), inside the Spring Valley YMCA at 19 W. Linfield Trappe Rd., and he’d like nothing better than to have local residents join him for the journey.
Curcio, who relies on a wheelchair for mobility after a roofing accident, again this year will focus his considerable energy and passion on a goal to raise $15,000 to benefit the Greater Philadelphia YMCA Financial Assistance program. It helps offset the cost of a Y membership for those who qualify financially.
Curcio became a Y fan during 2014, and later also became one of its employees. Spring Valley YMCA Executive Director Katie Koch calls him “a vital part of our fitness team, striving each day to make members feel welcome and helping them connect to healthier lives.”
It’s the same kind of connection Curcio himself sought, and found, at the Y when he began his rehabilitative fitness regimen there. Completing his “100-mile challenge,” as his ride is called, helps him share the gift of community support he said he still enjoys.
The ride itself will take place in the Y gym, where a special exercise machine allows Curcio to add up the miles with his hands doing the pedaling. He’s asking for public donations of any amount to help him reach the goal. Donations are being accepted online.
The gym will be open for the public to come in and cheer him on, too. Admittance is free, although identification must be provided at the door. Donations are encouraged, but they’re not required. Curcio can anticipate plenty of Y-Family company as well. Other riders will join him, as will participants in specially scheduled group classes for cardio-kickboxing (at 8:15 a.m.), cycling (9:45 a.m.), line dancing (1 p.m.) and RPM (5 p.m.)
The Spring Valley YMCA is a branch of the Greater Philadelphia YMCA, and Koch noted that Curcio’s effort has a direct impact on the Limerick facility. About 25 percent of Spring Valley members, she said, benefit each year from the help made possible by Curcio’s hundred-miler, and that of all financial assistance program donors.
Photo provided by the Spring Valley YMCA
