Ryan Gloyer memorial 5K aims to teach values of event’s namesake
JACKSON TWP — Hundreds of people gathered on Seneca Valley School District’s campus bright and early Sunday morning, Nov. 1, to run a 5K in honor of a former Green Beret and district alum.
According to race officials, 500 people officially signed up to run the fourth annual Ryan Gloyer Memorial 5K, which took participants around Ryan Gloyer Middle School and across the district’s campus.
Gloyer graduated from Seneca Valley Senior High School in 2000 and went on to earn degrees in early education and psychology from Thiel College. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 2004, rising to the rank of sergeant first class and eventually joining Special Forces. Gloyer died Nov. 3, 2016, in battle in Kunduz, Afghanistan, in support of Operation Freedom Sentinel — making Tuesday the 10th anniversary of his death.
In 2018, the district’s school board voted to rename the middle school Ryan Gloyer Middle School, which came with the commitment that the school district and its foundation would create an ongoing fundraising event in his name.
Since 2023, the Seneca Valley Foundation has been running the annual race for that exact purpose.
Richard “Dick” Gloyer, Ryan’s father, said the run does more than just keep his son’s name alive. It helps to instill some of the same values he lived by.
He said his son embodied the “three R’s” — respect, responsibility and resilience — that have become essential values the staff at Ryan Gloyer Middle School teach their students.
“These are all things that Ryan demonstrated when he was in the military,” Dick Gloyer said.
He said his son embodied resilience by never giving up on his dreams to join the Special Forces. He said it took three attempts before he was accepted into their ranks.
“The first time he wasn’t selected, and the second time he had a hairline fracture on his leg and he couldn’t do the difficult (course), but both times they said ‘we like you, we like everything you do, you’re welcome to try again,’” he said.
Dick Gloyer said he hopes by holding this event, he can instill resilience in others — either just to finish the race or in a larger, life-changing way.
“When kids look at their goals, say they don’t make a team or don’t make first chair clarinet or whatever, this tells them to keep working hard, aim for continuous improvement and strive for excellence,” he said.
He said the event is always “heartwarming” and thanked the district and community for supporting the run and the memory of his son.
Trisha Butschle, principal of Ryan Gloyer Middle School, stood at the finish line and cheered on participants as they crossed. She said the event helps the community understand a little better why the school was named after him.
“He wasn’t just a soldier,” she said. “He was a middle school kid who did all these things, and we want our kids to emulate that.”
More in Local News
