On a sunny Wednesday morning “Fireman Rob” Verhelst was in Kissimmee, playing a vigorous game basketball with a group of Boys and Girls Club members before starting a grueling schedule of four straight days of road races, all run while wearing full firefighter gear.
It’s something he does throughout the country and throughout the year, but coming to Central Florida is special, he said.
“This is my favorite,” Fireman Bob says of working with the Boys and Girls Club. “Every time I come down for the Disney Marathon weekend is when I work with them. It’s pretty awesome.” After appearances at two local branches, Fireman Rob will go to Walt Disney World and run its 5k race this morning, a 10k on Friday, a half-marathon on Saturday and full marathon on Sunday. “Normal” runners who embark on this quest call it the “Dopey Challenge”. Verhelst is set to do it all in full firefighter gear—35 pounds of it.
An active fireman in Madison Wisconsin for 25 years, Fireman Rob has also run marathons and iron-man competitions throughout the country about twice a month since 2011, all in full firefighter gear.
“I call this vacation—and fun. That’s the weird part,” he says.
Verhelst holds two world records. The first is for the most half-marathons run in a year (23), and two months ago he broke the world record for farthest distance travelled in full fire gear in 24 hours, which was 50 miles.
“It wasn’t as hard as this basketball game though,” he laughs, motioning to the kids still actively running up and down the court behind the Marydia Branch Club at the event.
“Rob is incredible,” says Dani Moritz, Chief Marketing and Communications Officer with the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Florida, which serves over 13,000 kids. “He’s supports us by running in the Run Disney races for us which helps us raise vital funds, particularly for our four clubs here in Osceola County.
“With the kids here today, it’s incredible because, one they’re so excited because he’s a firefighter, and what kid doesn’t want to hang out with a firefighter, right? So they think he’s super cool, but he’s really inspiring for them in terms of his journey on mental health and how he’s battled that—his integrity, his courage, his determination, all those themes that he talks about in the book are really resonant to our kids, so having him with our kids, letting him play and then talk a little bit is just a great opportunity.”
Before becoming a firefighter, Rob Verhelst served in the US Air Force and worked search and recovery on “the pile” at the Twin Towers after the Sept. 11 attack. It’s his second year working with the Central Florida Boys and Girls Club.
While visiting the Marydia and Tupperware Brands Branches in Kissimmee, he led fun fitness activities, read from his “Strong Kids” book series. It’s designed to help children navigate challenges and embrace who they are and build emotional strength. He talked with Club members about overcoming challenges and believing in themselves. He also answered questions about firefighting, including, “Do firefighters actually save cats out of trees?” (They do, he said.)
“We had a guy who went up in the ladder truck and when he went out to save the cat, the cat bit him on the hand, and he carried him down with the cat biting him on the hand. He did save him though.”
Accompanying him on this trip was Rob’s mom, Suzy Verhelst.
“Robbie is a giver,” she said with obvious pride. “He loves kids, he’s always animated, and the kids like that he’s animated. He cares a lot about kids growing up to feel good about themselves and to do the best that they can do.”
