Hope Pushes Youth Pastor to Run for Oklahoma Tornado Victims

Like most people, Tylre Butler watched the devastation in Oklahoma from a massive tornado and said prayers for healing and recovery. But then he realized he needed to do more.

"I've been running to lose some weight and get in shape," the Oak Creek resident said. "So I thought I'd run for Oklahoma. So many people see the news and say, 'Oh, that's sad,' but that's the end of it. I couldn't let that be the end of it for me."

Butler plans to run 27 miles Friday from the Sugar Shack - an event sponsor - in Racine to Bradford Beach in Milwaukee. He said he expects to get started around noon and finish around 6 p.m. so family, friends and other supporters can enjoy a beach party after work.

He admitted 27 miles is further than he has ever run before.

"Yeah, I can do about 10 miles now," Butler said with a chuckle. "And I think I will be in pain, but what I will experience for that short amount of time is nothing compared to what the parents who lost a child are going through or what the families who lost everything are dealing with."

His goal is to raise $10,000 so two churches - Guts Church and lifechurch.tv - can deliver immediate needs to residents. Butler said lifechurch alone has 70 families who lost their homes.

Butler does have ties to Oklahoma, having graduated from Oral Roberts University in Tulsa in 2009. He served at a church in Munster, IN, and returned to his hometown two years ago. He is a youth pastor at True Life Church in Mount Pleasant, where he was raised.

Gina Gennaro is Butler's fiancee, and she said she's excited about him taking this kind of initiative.

"I am very excited and proud of Tylre for actively trying to make a difference," she said. "It is easy to talk about wanting to help others who are hurting, but putting words into actions is what makes changes and that is what he is doing."  

Other sponsors of Butler's quest include the Racine Threat football team and the Surg Restaurant Group, which runs the concession stand at Bradford Beach. Butler also has a website, www.thehopepushers.com, where people can donate.

It's probably not a coicidence that Butler's website is about hope. Gennaro said he has a phrase that sums up both his character and the way he looks at life.

"Tylre has been saying a phrase that I think it pretty much sums things up: 'hopeless times call for hope-filled measures,'" she stated.