Fit Fest to benefit Paul Ambrose Trail for Health

The money raised from the event benefits the Paul Ambrose Trail for Health or ‘PATH as it’s referred to locally. The Rahall Transportation Institute will conduct Fit Fest on Sunday, just a couple days before the 11^th anniversary of September 11.

That’s the day that trails namesake, Paul Ambrose perished in American Airlines Flight 97 that crashed into the Pentagon. Ambrose focused his medical career on family health and using preventative measures to fight obesity. So a trail system is being established in his name that leads through Huntington, his hometown. Bethany Williams is Program Director at the Rahall Transportation Institute. The 4^th annual Fit Fest is just part of the effort for the project.

“We at first started out as a 5k, 10k and with a couple of kids races and events, but we’ve kind of grown into a community health event where not only can you participate in running and walking and, you can also come to see healthy exhibitors and vendors and opportunities around this area to improve our health,” Williams said.

The trail system leads in and around the city of Huntington utilizing roadways and existing structures like the flood wall. Through grants, fundraising, sponsorships and individual contributions, over $2.5 million has been raised to support the construction and maintenance of the PATH along with $85,000 this year.

“Some parts were already there. With Ritter, we just tried to improve a couple of things and of course the Flood Wall is such low hanging fruit we don’t necessarily have to go through land donors and there’s not a lot of trees to get out of the way type stuff and then seeing as you’re on a path and a trail, what’s the next step you can’t just end. You have to connect it to the other part of the trail,” Williams said.

The Huntington community has grasped the effort to build the PATH.

“Locals neighbors come out and say 'thank you' for doing this. I walk this every day. There’s not as much crime here anymore so they’ve started to embrace it and it’s just showing how the community of the neighborhoods really want it in their neighborhood and it will be used,” Williams said.

Williams said it’s been amazing to see how much the community has contributed so far to help an effort that touches on memorializing, but also aims to improve the health of the region.

“There’s always that continual knowledge about how that event changed history for many of us and just the good works that Paul Ambrose did and his of obesity through healthy means in an active lifestyle, getting that piece out and this is just a way that his fight can continue on,” Williams said.

Events start at Ritter Park Sunday in Huntington at 1:30 pm.