U.S. Army veteran Gary Dolloff of Rumford, front right, is joined Friday morning by Iraq War veteran Kenny Blaisdell of Roxbury, front left, to finish Dolloff’s yearlong goal to raise money for Operation Reboot Outdoors. Rumford and Dixfield firetrucks hoisted the American flag over Congress Street in Rumford to mark the end of Dolloff’s 2,132-mile run to benefit veterans. Blaisdell is wearing his running blades for the first time, and behind the pair is Dolloff’s wrestling team from Mountain Valley High School. Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times
RUMFORD — Closing out 2021 on Friday morning, U.S. Army veteran Gary Dolloff ran the last four miles of his yearlong 2,132-mile trek, raising $36,000 for Operation Reboot Outdoors for veterans.
“I can’t put into words what this moment in my life means to me,” he told a large crowd in front of the Greater Rumford Community Center on Congress Street where he is the director.
Dolloff was joined on the final run by Iraq War veteran Kenny Blaisdell of Roxbury, who is part of Operation Reboot Outdoors, an organization dedicated to helping veterans assimilate back into society. Joining them was the Mountain Valley High School wrestling team, which Dolloff coaches.
“I was thinking of guys like Kenny . . . He just ran with his new running blades,” Dolloff said. “We can all do something for guys like Kenny. They laid their lives down for us, every single day.”
Later, addressing a crowd at the American Legion hall, Blaisdell said, “I just want to say thank you, Gary, for everything you’ve done for Operation Reboot. It truly means the world to me because I know it’s going to a good cause. Dan (Waite, founder and president of Operation Reboot Outdoors) heard about me and personally reached out to me and never gave up on me. The moment I came to Reboot, I felt like family.
“Reboot goes above and beyond for any veteran out there,” he said, “and we won’t leave them behind. We’ll do what it takes to get them to where they need to be.”
Originally, Dolloff challenged himself to run 2,021 miles and hoped to raise at least $3,000 from supporters in the community. However, he added another 111 miles, about the distance from Rumford to Austin, Texas, where his daughter lives.
When the $3,000 goal was met, Dolloff went further, surpassing the $35,000 mark thanks to weekly sponsors.
After presenting Waite with a $36,000 check, Dolloff said, “These two feet, they hurt. But it was that guy (Blaisdell) and my nephew, Cody, that kept me going.” He said Cody sent him a message early this year that read, “Uncle, you can do this. I know that you’ll never quit . . . When times got tough, I would just think about that, and about Kenny.”
Dolloff, 56, said he lost 46 pounds running about six miles a day all year. He said when he gets up Saturday he can say, “I don’t have to run today.”
Gary Dolloff of Rumford, left, celebrates Friday morning with a crowd after he finished his yearlong 2,132-mile run on Congress Street. He accomplished his goal, raising $36,000 for Operation Reboot Outdoors to support military veterans. Joining him are veterans, the Mountain Valley High School wrestling team and others. Bruce Farrin/Rumford Falls Times
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