After former University President Jim Ryan announced his resignation June 27, the student body and greater Charlottesville community rallied to support one another. The first public manifestation of this was an impromptu, student-led “Run For Jim” the morning after the news broke.
Immediately, the team at Ragged Mountain Running & Walking Shop stepped in to help. A friend of Ryan’s, Ragged Mountain founder Mark Lorenzoni emailed Ryan to make sure he knew about the run and implored him and his wife, Katie, to attend. And so they did.
The two of them ran 2.8 miles that Saturday morning in the company of hundreds of students and University community members, who all came out to pay tribute to Ryan’s leadership with one last jog around Grounds.
After that heartfelt showcase of community ties, Mark and his son Alec Lorenzoni, Ragged Mountain co-owner and Class of 2007 alumnus, wanted to do more. Just a week later, they started selling their own “I Run With Jim” T-shirts to raise funds for local charities. Ragged Mountain has since sold over 1,000 shirts and donated over $8,000 in proceeds.
The recipients of the “I Run With Jim” fund — PHAR Cville, Big Brothers-Big Sisters of the Blue Ridge, the Charlottesville Free Clinic and the local Special Olympics chapter — all have ties to the President’s Council on U.Va.-Community Partnerships, an initiative spearheaded by Ryan in 2018 to strengthen the relationship between the University and the surrounding community. According to Ragged Mountain’s website, the causes are “near and dear” to Ryan’s heart.
Modeled after the cotton T-shirts that were distributed at Run With Jim events, Ragged Mountain’s shirts are emblazoned with “I Run With Jim” on the back. On the front of the shirts, Ryan’s running silhouette appears alongside the number 9 — a nod to his tenure as the University’s ninth president.
Alec said the shirts were initially pre-ordered, but the demand has grown so high that another order of 300 shirts was placed last week, and they may place even more orders down the line.
For Mark, the success of the project, and its impact, are a testament to Ryan’s reputation in the community.
"[The shirt] is something positive and tangible that [community members] can put on and feel part of his legacy, and also say, ‘I'm behind this man, supporting him,’” Mark said. “It's been almost therapeutic to do something like this, because it's been so positive.”
The Lorenzoni family has known Ryan for decades, spanning from his time as a faculty member at the School of Law to the present day. In fact, Mark is Ryan’s running coach.
But their connection runs even deeper than friendship. The elder Lorenzoni was the spark behind the idea for the Run With Jim program in the first place, back when Ryan became president in 2018. Mark suggested that Ryan use his love of running as a way to connect with students, never thinking that it would become a touchstone of his presidency.
“You can use your running as a means to connect people, to do some real good,” Mark said. “[Ryan] brought people together in that commonality on foot and [with] the whole notion of being able to converse in a relaxed, safe setting. He's had a profound influence.”
Jesse Smith, president of U.Va. Club Running and graduate Engineering student, echoed Mark’s sentiment. Smith, who also works at Ragged Mountain, believes that running is about more than just exercise. Smith said that running is about community — just as Ryan believed — and Run With Jim made the pastime accessible and meaningful to students.
Smith shared that he started attending Ryan’s runs as a first-year student when he did not know many of his peers, and the event instantly made him feel more at home on Grounds. Throughout his four years, Smith frequently attended the runs alongside fellow members of Club Running, who were all enthusiastic Run With Jim participants.
“It was cool every time to … finagle our way [up to] the front [and] talk [to Ryan],” Smith said. “He's a very personable guy, and I think that's what's made him a very effective president during his tenure.”
According to Alec, that kind of atmosphere is what made Run With Jim one of Ryan’s most popular student initiatives.
“I think [Run With Jim was] one of the best things he's done,” Alec said. “I know he [opened] his house up for these study sessions with the students, but in terms of engaging with the student body on a regular basis, I think the runs [were] awesome.”
As an alumnus, Alec said he felt compelled to bring some positivity to the aftermath of Ryan’s controversial outsting, which was fueled by the Department of Justice and the Board of Visitors. For Alec, the T-shirt campaign was an effective way to spread joy and uplift the community during a period of uncertainty.
“[Ragged Mountain] has been right across from U.Va. for 40 years, but [my sister and I] both went to U.Va. and just feel very strongly about the positive relationship between the University and in the Charlottesville community,” Alec said.
Even after promoting the “Run For Jim” in June and selling over 1,000 shirts in Ryan’s name, the Lorenzonis continue to stand up for Ryan. Like many have already, Alec expressed disappointment over Ryan’s resignation.
“I think a lot of people in the community still have questions about how it transpired,” Alec said. “What's going to happen next? Obviously, we have an interim president, but I think there's just a lot of uncertainty right now.”
For now, the monthly Run With Jim events are on hiatus. But the true essence of those events was community, a value that still runs deep at the University. The Lorenzonis would agree that community is something Ryan cared deeply about with all of his heart, and his inclusive, cheerful runs were a way to make that clear. According to Alec, Ryan’s legacy will live on — and the T-shirts are simply a reminder of his indelible footprint.
“The beauty of the sport, and sports in general, is that kind of team connection,” Alec said. “And so we'll be sad to see [Ryan] go. But maybe, maybe the next president will continue that tradition.”
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