Family Member named 'Recycler of the Year'

By Mr. Steve Ghiringhelli (Drum)November 13, 2014

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Joe Sullivan, right, self-dubbed the Recycling Runner, receives the Recycler of the Year citizen award from James Gilbert, vice president of the New York State Association of Reduction, Reuse and Recycling, during the organization's annual conference... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. -- Known for collecting litter along his run route to later sort, recycle and redeem for charity, one Fort Drum resident's personal mission to combine exercise and minding the environment recently caught the attention of officials from the New York State Association of Reduction, Reuse and Recycling (NYSAR3).

Heart attack survivor Joe Sullivan was recognized Friday with the NYSAR3 "Recycler of the Year" award in the citizen category during the association's annual conference at the Otesaga Resort Hotel in Cooperstown.

"I clean up litter and I put it where it belongs," Sullivan explained to the crowd after receiving the award. "I redeem all the recyclables and give the money to the American Heart Association. It's just my way to fight my battle against heart disease and show others that, just because you are faced with adversities, you should not give up … and you can give back along the way."

Sullivan, an Army veteran self-dubbed the Recycling Runner, was nominated for the award by his wife, Maj. Adrian Sullivan, 10th Mountain Division (LI) Sexual Harassment / Assault Response and Prevention program manager.

Sullivan thanked her before pointing everyone's attention to the back of the room, where his 2-year-old twins, Jacob and Joshua, were seated.

"I can't forget my two teammates back there -- those two little loud munchkins," he said to audience laughter.

Sullivan told the crowd that he noticed he had a greater appreciation for the world and nature in general after surviving a massive heart attack 10 years ago.

"And I realized that it's not a very clean place," he said. "So I just started working on it on my own."

On most days, Sullivan can be seen on or around Fort Drum running behind a double stroller, filling up his backpack and stroller storage basket with all kinds of trash, debris and recyclables.

James Gilbert, NYSAR3 vice president, said that because most discarded materials are actually scrap that has value when reclaimed, recycling is an activity that helps ordinary citizens make positive contributions on New York's environment and economy.

"Within that group," he added, "there are a few extraordinary citizens like Joe, who go above and beyond, to take their impact to another level."

Terry Laibach, chairperson of the NYSAR3 awards committee, said it was fitting that Sullivan received the organization's first Recycler of the Year award in the citizen category just ahead of both Veterans Day and this week's "America Recycles Day."

"People came up to me afterwards, truly touched by his story," she said.

Sullivan suffered his heart attack in 2004, shortly after serving in the Middle East in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. He underwent years of intensive rehabilitation, eventually recovering enough that he could nearly jog, which defied many medical expectations.

He said his biggest drive toward health at the time was his 8-year-old son, Nathan, whom he did not want to leave alone in this world.

He met his wife while recovering and the two married in 2006, the same year Sullivan medically separated from the Army.

Over the years, he made drastic changes to an already healthy diet and quickly developed what would become a lasting passion for running.

Since leaving the Army, he has run in both half and full mara-thons nationwide. He calls the 2010 Army Ten-Miler his "come-back race," when he joined some friends from Fort Lee, Va., and ran it in 74 minutes.

The idea for recycling while running originated in Virginia five years ago, when the Sullivans lived off post.

"I just got tired of seeing this one trail covered in trash," Sullivan ex-plained. "So I started filling my backpack with whatever I could. I felt I was really just doing it for myself, because these were my running routes."

As he cleaned up his small piece of the planet, Sullivan realized his actions could potentially influence others.

Since arriving in northern New York more than two years ago, he has trekked thousands of miles and raised more than $2,000 for the American Heart Association.

"I am trying to make it a bigger and better thing, and hopefully, one day, turn it into a nonprofit organization where I can get other people involved and maybe create a recycling Army of runners and get people who want to give back to their community," he said.