WHO INSPIRES YOU?

Freshman year in high school, I gravitated toward football in the fall and basketball in the winter; yet when it came to playing a spring sport, baseball wasn’t a natural fit for an attention-challenged kid like me. That left track, specifically the sprints, for a young guy who couldn’t sit still and tried to do everything fast.

Continuing to run track in high school, my Uncle Larry saw how much I enjoyed the sport, which led him to share stories of his Villanova days and classmates Ron Delaney and Charlie Jenkins -- both won gold medals in the 1956 Melbourne Olympics!

Then Larry began taking me to the Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden, where more than 18,000 people would watch the premier indoor track and field meet. I was mesmerized watching current Villanova runners and alums compete against the best in the world.  I even watched a high schooler from Plainfield, New Jersey, John Marshall, who was so good he competed in the 800 meters against collegiate and club runners.

While I began to think of running track in college, my childhood friend, Pete DeStefano had enrolled at Villanova and dared to try and walk-on to Villanova’s storied track team. Dared -- because Pete was born with cataracts that they tried to correct with surgeries, but which left him with virtually no sight in his left eye and about twenty-five percent sight in the right.

Declared legally blind, he was able to read with a magnifying glass with his right eye, but not able to play contact sports and, of course, couldn’t drive. While Pete played sandlot football and pickup basketball in our neighborhood, the town and school teams wouldn’t allow him to play those sports due to his eyesight.

Running, considered a non-contact sport, was Pete‘s only option if he wanted to compete. Despite his limited eyesight, he laced up his sneakers and joined our high school cross country and track teams.

Pete ran the half mile, mile and 2 mile in high school (now run in meters as the 800, 1500/1600 and 3000).  He wasn’t the fastest at any of these races, but no one could beat his toughness; training every day, sometimes falling in a ditch or taking the wrong road or trail because of his eyesight, he never gave up.

He grew to love the sport, where hard work was rewarded with faster times and a coach couldn’t put you on the bench because he had favorites.  As Pete’s times improved, he began to dream of running in college – even at Villanova, his first choice.

As Pete began his first semester at Villanova, the cross-country season had begun and he lined up with a dozen or so other hopeful walk-ons at the Belmont Plateau in Philadelphia, where the cross-country team trained and competed. He had no illusions of displacing future Olympians Sydney Maree and Don Paige -- he just wanted a Villanova singlet, to be a part of the team and maybe someday score some points.

It’s hard to imagine being legally blind and keeping up with the academic demands at Villanova -- then add the daily training it took to be a distance runner. Day after day, week in and week out, Pete showed up to practice, routinely logging 10-15 miles per day! He had to train hard if he wanted to stay on the team -- but also fueled by some who teased and even laughed when he would take a wrong turn on a cross-country course or inevitably fell in a ditch that every other runner easily avoided.

Discouraged at times, frustrated at others, yet Pete never quit. His hard work was rewarded his Senior year at the Big East Outdoor Championships in the 10,000 meters, where he finished 4th behind 2 future Olympians, John Treacy from Providence and John Gregorek from Georgetown, and All-American Charlie Bevier from Syracuse. Villanova narrowly defeated Seton Hall for the Championship, 147 to 145 -- and Pete’s 4th place finish earned the team 5 valuable points!

The combination of Uncle Larry exposing me to Villanova track greats and Pete’s relentless optimism and determination, spurred my desire to run for Villanova one day. It was not a linear path to Villanova, but once I got there, (and only after a blunt, old-school talk from my father telling me to believe in myself), I put in the work to walk-on to the track team.

And that high school runner, John Marshall, who I watched in the Millrose games, had become my teammate -- and our Coach was Uncle Larry’s classmate at Villanova, Charlie Jenkins!

Although I was a 400/800m runner and Pete was a long-distance runner, we would get together for summer track workouts and an occasional run that would be longer than I wanted. Pete always pushed himself, testing his limits, so training with him was always a challenge.

After he graduated, Pete continued to train and compete in 10K and 5K races and even ran a 2:29 marathon. All the years of training and the thousands of miles took its toll and after enduring a rough Philadelphia Marathon, Pete decided to take a break from running and began focusing on strength training.

With a 6’ 2”, 180 pound frame – not a natural runner’s build -- he quickly took to the weight training and found a new passion.  As Pete got bigger and stronger, he pivoted from running to weight-lifting and the field events of shot put and discus. With the help of his Father, Pete continued to compete as a Masters athlete in his 40’s in the shot put and discus.

In his mid-50's, Pete suffered a massive stroke that required brain surgery, years of rehabilitation and neurological deficits that he’ll have for the rest of his life. In the face of this devastating injury, Pete has made incredible strides in regaining some physical strength in his arms and legs -- and perhaps the most amazing part of his recovery, has been his mental acuity and memory.

Pete walks with a cane, socializes with friends and ... wait for it -- continues to lift weights to maintain his strength and even sets physical goals to improve his daily life. If life throws you challenges that seem insurmountable, think about Pete and never quit.