SLIPPERY ROCK — One good turn deserves another.

Seneca Valley assistant track coach and Slippery Rock resident Gar Bercury, and his stepmother, Renee Bercury, lived out that saying at the 18-mile mark during Monday's Boston Marathon.

Gar, 44, was competing in the second marathon of his lifetime. He ran last year's Pittsburgh Marathon in two hours, 58.44 minutes.

“My goal was to run Boston in less than 2:50,” he said. “I felt good and confident.

“Then I received a rude awakening.”

The weather.

The Boston Marathon course runs from west to east. Runners ran directly into a head-wind between 20 and 40 miles per hour. The temperature was in the upper 30s, wind chills in the 20s with a cold rain falling all day.

“That head-wind was like running into a brick wall,” Bercury said.

By the time Bercury hit the 18th mile — by the famed Newton Hills portion of the marathon — “I was in big trouble.

“I fell apart. I was dealing with hypothermia. I was very fortunate there were incredibly wonderful people watching the race,” he said.

Renee Bercury was among people of that ilk.

A dragging Gar Bercury was dragged off the course by onlookers, taken into a stranger's home, received medical treatment, warmed up and was eventually transported by an Uber to rejoin his family in downtown Boston.

“His own story there is incredible,” his stepmother said. “When we saw him coming toward us ... Gar looked terrible. I'm not sure what would have happened to him if those people didn't help him. Even the mayor of Newton assisted him.”

Before her son was rescued, Renee Bercury performed a rescue mission of her own.

Runner Steven Stallis, 27, a seventh-grade science teacher and high school track coach from St. Louis, showed up to run the Boston Marathon in just regular running gear.

He was paying for it, fading mentally and physically, admittedly being driven to tears by the punishing elements.

Renee Bercury saw Stallis approaching minutes before Gar arrived at that mark.

“My stepmom is an amazingly giving person by nature,” Gar Bercury said. “She saw the man was in trouble, took off her raincoat and threw it to him.

“The guys hands were so numb, he needed help from another onlooker to even put the coat on.”

Renee said “the look on his face was genuine desperation. He struck me as someone who was drowning, sticking his hand out for someone to save his life. It was that dramatic to me.

“I don't think it was that big a deal I gave him my jacket. A lot of people do stuff like that there. But he did appreciate it.”

Even after giving Stallis her jacket, she wasn't sure if it would fit him.

“As he ran on, I saw the jacket flapping in the wind,” she said. A few feet further down, he stopped and had someone zip the coat up. His fingers weren't working.

“The man said he heard her nephew yelling, telling him he had to finish the race now.”

Re-energized by Renee's gesture and rejuvenated by an encouraging crowd, Stallis wound up finishing 498th overall.

After the race, he hoped to find the woman kind enough to give up her raincoat.

Gar Bercury read about his search on boston.com the next night.

“I was just looking through stories about the marathon on my computer and by dumb luck, I stumbled across that story,” Gar said. “I called my mom and asked what color raincoat she had on that day.

“The colors matched. We figured she was who he was looking for.”

She was.

Renee spoke with Stallis on the phone Wednesday night. He is sending her jacket back to her.

“We had a brief conversation. He thanked me. Gar had talked to him that afternoon,” Renee said. “I'm sure they will stay in touch. They both coach high school track and that's the way Gar us.

“He (Stallis) has run a number of marathons and plans on doing one in September. Gar will keep me updated on how he's doing.”

As for Gar Bercury, he plans to return to the Boston Marathon.

“What I'll forever remember about this experience is the kindness and selflessness of people watching ... so many wonderful people there, doing what they could to help runners in a rough situation,” he said.

“I'll never forget that.”

He added that next year's marathon “will be a story of redemption ... my redemption.”