by Elsie Walker

In 2014, a local team of 11 people participated in the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers (T2T) Foundation Walk/Run in New York. (That foundation is named for Siller, an off-duty firefighter who ran from the tunnel to the towers in full gear on 9/11 to help, only to later lose his life on that day.)  Little did the group from our area know but their participation would grow and from it, an idea to help first responders in our area.   The 403 Reasons to Run Foundation was launched this past January.  The name comes from the number of first responders (firefighters, police, and EMS) who gave their lives on 9/11. As the new foundation’s website notes, its vision is, “Modeled after the Stephen Siller, Tunnel to Towers Foundation, our foundation also honors and supports the fire, police and EMS communities, their families and members of our local communities that experience a catastrophic life changing event and are in need of assistance. Our vision is to do good things for good people, by whole heartedly continuing to support T2T and our local heroes.”  Co-founder-CEO-President   Jacqueline Pelleck, of Byram, was quick to note that though its name says “reasons to run” you don’t have to be a runner to get involved or help.  “We’re way more than just running.  There is a job for anyone,” she said, giving helping with fundraisers as an example.  

It all began in 2014, Pelleck and her husband Michael were at the gym and saw something about that year’s Tower to Tunnel Walk/Run.  Jacqueline Pelleck remembers saying, “We should do it!”  They gathered some others and that year they had a team of 11 participate in the event.   “It was the most moving event I’ve ever done,” she said.  Inspired by the “do good” feel which permeated the event, the couple decided to do it again in 2015, spreading the word, and the team grew.  It also got sponsors and did fundraisers.  Every year, the team got larger as people saw what it was about. Phil Savarin, of Byram, is part of the team and noted how moving it is “when you come out of the tunnel and see the pictures of the fallen.”   Last year, the group chartered four buses to carry a team of 210 people to the event.  The team raised $17,000 which went directly to the Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation.   However, the Pelleck’s wanted to do more, something for the local community.  With the assistance of one of their sponsors, Wayne Deitz of Skylands Risk Management to connect them with attorneys to help them, the non-profit 403 Reasons to Run Foundation was born. 

“It is a chance to give back to the first responders in a meaningful way,” said Savarin, vice president of the new foundation. 

To help that giving back, the foundation will be holding fundraisers, two of which are coming up in June.  On June 3rd, Psychic Medium Catherine McCall will be at the Byram Firehouse.  McCall talks to people who have passed away, and shares messages from some with loved ones in the audience.   Jacqueline Pelleck notes that McCall is “pretty amazing” as she asks questions and zeroes in on the recipient of a message. The other fundraiser is on June 10th.  It is a golf outing at the Farmstead Golf and Country Club in Lafayette.  People can sign up to play or to sponsor a hole, donate a door prize, etc.   Information on both events can be found on the foundation’s website: www.403reasonstorun.org. 

The foundation has a seven-member board which draws on people from a variety of career backgrounds. Jacqueline Pelleck has been a teacher for over 30 years and teaches in the Mount Olive school system; her husband, Michael, the Co-Founder-CFO, has spent his life in the fire safety field and is currently Fire Official/Safety Officer for the Township of Roxbury.  Vice President Savarin is a Process Management Analyst for Prudential Financial. Other board members include Jamie Caravaggio, of Hopatcong, who has been a law enforcement officer for 16 years; Emily Mason, of Byram, an elementary special education teacher in the Byram School District,  Jeri Quirk, of Byram, a labor and delivery nurse, and Todd Rudloff, of Byram, who works for Firefighter One LLC, a vendor for first responder equipment.  In addition, Michael Pelleck is currently Assistant Chief of the Byram Township (volunteer) Fire Department and Rudloff is its Chief.

Board members have been spreading the words about their new foundation, speaking to first responder groups, the community, family and friends, and letting them know about what it does. Those who would like a member to speak to a group, can contact the foundation via its website.  Besides their own fundraising efforts to help others, the foundation will advertise the fundraising events of first responder groups on its website and also support those events by attending and getting others to attend.  Of course, they will continue to get together a team for the yearly Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers Foundation Walk/Run in New York.  This year, that event will be held on September 25th.  

For more information on 403 Reasons to Run Foundation, visit its website at www.403reasonstorun.org/. The foundation can also be found on Facebook and Instagram.