DREAM TEAM … Ron with a few of the therapists who helped him regain his ability to walk from left to right: Megan Lucille, Ron King, Kayla Mansfield, and Hannah Overmyer.
By: Amy Wendt
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
amy@thevillagereporter.com
What better way to kick off the weekend than a brisk run or walk through Goll Woods? That’s exactly what family, friends, and supporters of Archbold’s Ron King did on the morning of November 4 at the Run With Ron 5K.
While it was an overcast morning, raindrops managed to stay away as participants followed the 5K route that circled through Goll Woods.
Numerous walkers and runners congregated in the Lockport Mennonite Church parking lot to register for the race before moving to the staging area located at the picturesque Lockport Covered Bridge in Williams County.
There were 138 registered walkers and runners in addition to the numerous friends and family members who were there to offer Ron support.
The initiative was King’s way to commemorate his recovery and share his journey with friends and family after overcoming Guillain-Barré Syndrome, a condition that led to his complete yet temporary paralysis over two years ago.
With therapy, hard work, and determination, King regained the use of his body and celebrated with his own 5K race.
According to Ron’s video testimony on the Run With Ron 5K Facebook page, his story began in August of 2021. Upon waking up, Ron felt as though he had suffered from a stroke, and his wife, Cathy promptly took him to the hospital.
Though health professionals were unable to give him an immediate diagnosis, his ailment progressed rapidly, and he woke the next morning to find his left leg numb.
In quick succession, he lost feeling in his right leg and then both of his arms which led practitioners to immediately transfer him to UTMC where a group of doctors quickly got to work looking for an answer.
Doctors determined that King was suffering from Guillain-Barré Syndrome. According to the GBS|CIDP Foundation International website, “Guillain-Barré Syndrome is an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves outside the brain and spinal cord” that “is characterized by the rapid onset of numbness, weakness, and often paralysis of the legs, arms, breathing muscles, and face. Paralysis is ascending, meaning that it travels up the limbs from fingers and toes towards the torso.”
Before long, King was completely paralyzed and relied on 24-hour care from his wife Cathy, and therapists. What’s more, King not only lost his motor skills, but the affliction also attacked the nerves in his brain causing hallucinations.
Ron had to undergo extensive therapy to regain his ability to walk. Along with the hallucinations, King also experienced personality changes.
As his family was by his side on a particularly challenging day, they played praise and worship music in an attempt to lift his spirit.
As the hymn “How Great Thou Art” filled the room, King began to sing along. King noted that was the last time he experienced a hallucination.
On his road to recovery, Ron’s wife Cathy stayed with him nearly 24/7 while he became stronger. However, tragedy once again struck the King family when in November 2021 Cathy suddenly became ill. Shortly thereafter she was diagnosed with Stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer. Less than two months after the cancer had been discovered, Cathy passed away in January 2022.
Following his wife’s passing, Ron remembers praying with a tinge of anger before turning it into a prayer of gratitude, recognizing he couldn’t stay in that dark place. Turning his pain into purpose, he focused on being a positive influence to others in the community, aiming to exemplify what it meant to lead a godly life.
Participating alongside Ron in the 5K walkers and runners not only helped him achieve his goal but also celebrated his faith, determination, and recovery.
Ron summed up his journey in his Facebook video testimony by saying, “I want to finish my life with excellence. I wanna run the race hard and I want to give God the glory.”
All proceeds raised at the Run With Ron 5K will benefit The King’s Corner Garage, Archbold.