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ST. GEORGE — A Utah man who embarked on a 250-mile run to help raise money for deaf children reached his goal over the weekend.
Justin Osmond, son of Merrill Osmond, lead singer of The Osmonds, started his trek in Ephraim back on May 2. He made it all the way to St. George in the days since.
Justin Osmond, who is 90 percent deaf, was raising money for the Olive Osmond Hearing Fund, one that’s partnered with the Washington County School District in an effort to provide necessary hearing aids for children. A group called Run4Hearing, sponsoring both Osmond’s solo run and public 5K runs, was also involved in the events.
Osmond trained by running over 100 miles a week leading up to the event. He ran an average of 35 miles per day during the race itself, more than a marathon per day.
Osmond had plenty of support from his family. He spoke with his father on the phone frequently throughout his grueling attempt, during which Merrill said Justin even ran through rain and hail. He even got further encouragement from his aunt Marie Osmond, who flew in just to be present.
“I was in Vegas last night,” Marie Osmond said. “And I told my husband, I said, 'you know what, I just feel my mother saying, get yourself off down there and give him a hug for me!’"
