‘After I opened up online about my dad\u2019s lived experience, a lot of people started reaching out. They thanked me for\u00a0sharing,\u00a0they told me their stories. It started a lot of conversations \u2014 and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0really what we wanted to keep going’<\/p>\n
Rooted is all about the people and the places that make us proud to call our community home.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
—<\/p>\n
It started, as so many\u00a0good ideas\u00a0do, with a conversation on the trail.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sully Sullivan and Mike McDonough were driving to yet another early-morning run when\u00a0their\u00a0talk turned to\u00a0doing something more about advocating for mental health awareness.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cHow could we incorporate that with running?\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cWe\u00a0started chatting about this race \u2014 QMT\u00a0(Quebec Mega Trail)\u00a0\u2014 that we were training for. Some ideas came on the trail about doing the bigger distance and trying to raise money. Then we brought Nick and Jay into the fold. From there, it just\u00a0kind of grew\u00a0organically.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
What started as two friends with an idea has evolved into Chasing Clarity \u2014 a North Bay-based running community built around connection, conversation, and breaking down stigma around mental health.\u00a0<\/p>\n
But Sullivan\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0see it as a traditional running club.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t necessarily consider Chasing Clarity a running club per se,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re\u00a0part of other groups that enjoy running, but this is more about doing something out of our comfort zone while raising awareness and keeping conversations going. People living with mental health challenges do that every day \u2014 this is our way of helping to promote that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
For McDonough, those early morning runs were already something special before they had a name.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had this growing group of people coming together at ridiculous hours in the morning,\u201d McDonough said. \u201cIt\u00a0was\u00a0a chance for friends to get together and talk about\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0going on in their lives. You could feel that we were onto something. People came for the runs, but they stayed because it was\u00a0a great group\u00a0of caring, open people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
And when Sullivan began to share his own story publicly \u2014 including the loss of his father to suicide in 2018 \u2014 the meaning behind Chasing Clarity deepened.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cAfter I opened up online about my dad\u2019s lived experience, a lot of people started reaching out,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cThey thanked me for\u00a0sharing, and they told me their stories. It started a lot of conversations \u2014 and\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0really what we wanted to keep going.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
When firefighter Nick Allen joined, he says it\u00a0immediately\u00a0filled a gap he\u00a0hadn\u2019t\u00a0realized was missing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve always been a big runner, but I used to do it by myself,\u201d Allen said. \u201cWhen I started joining these guys, I realized what I was missing \u2014 that community piece. We always say we go for runs, but\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0not about the running.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0about allowing people to show up as they are and have those meaningful conversations.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
For the members of Chasing Clarity, running has become about much more than fitness. The miles on the trail are often secondary to the conversations that happen along the way.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me personally, it\u2019s just to know that people are out there talking,\u201d said Jason Chirico. \u201cWe\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0need to be running. We meet at the brewery in the morning for anybody who wants to walk, jog, or run with us, and\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0just about bringing\u00a0people together to talk. Some of my best conversations of\u00a0the week are with these guys and the broader community.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0no barriers\u2014nothing we\u00a0can\u2019t\u00a0talk about.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That open-door, no-judgment approach has become the foundation of Chasing Clarity.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think the main mission is to keep conversation going and to raise money for Chat for Chad, which we keep promoting,\u201d Sullivan said. \u201cAnd with this whole running thing, the vast majority of what keeps us pushing to those limits\u2014the training, the endurance, the recovery\u2014those same things are important with mental health. Community, rest, sleep, proper nutrition\u2026 it all connects.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chasing Clarity\u2019s members have tied their efforts closely with the Chat for Chad foundation, a North Bay-based organization focused on supporting mental health initiatives. Their fundraising is ongoing, Sullivan noted, with donations linked through the group\u2019s social media and periodic events hosted in partnership with Gateway City Brewery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all year round,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019ve done fundraisers at the brewery, we\u2019re planning more content and events, and in January, we\u2019ll do another big push\u00a0as we start training for the QMT.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Seeing the community\u2019s response, Sullivan said, has been emotional.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it\u2019s super heartwarming,\u201d he shared. \u201cMental health services are still underfunded, and\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0so much work to do. But to see the community step up the way it has\u2014like at this year\u2019s Chat for Chad gala\u2014was incredible. Nick got us a table, and we were there to see it firsthand. It was quite emotional to\u00a0witness\u00a0how much support there is for the cause and how many people are honouring Chad by helping others get the support they need.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The gala raised more than $500,000 in 2025, more than doubling the 2024 event.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cJust seeing that evening, you see clearly how much mental health affects everyone,\u201d said Chirico, reflecting on the most recent\u00a0event. \u201cThe whole community is out and supporting. Throughout the whole journey leading up to the race, I was brought to tears multiple times from people reaching out, donating money, or just wishing us good luck. One night, we were all at the brewery after a run, and someone came up to Sully to tell him how much his post had affected him.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0overwhelming to see that kind of support \u2014 both for Chat for Chad and for Chasing Clarity.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
McDonough\u00a0says that the outpouring of encouragement shows not only how much people care, but how much\u00a0they\u2019ve\u00a0needed something like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think people are looking for these outlets,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m\u00a0not sure what was happening in our community before Chat for Chad was founded, but they created this organization that raises money, and people show up.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0obviously a need for it. The community gets it. And I think what Sully\u2019s done with Chasing Clarity is another one of those outlets.\u00a0He\u2019s\u00a0created something through running and fitness\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0going to capture a lot of people \u2014 and we need more of these things.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Allen agrees that these conversations are long overdue \u2014 and that initiatives like Chat for Chad and Chasing Clarity are permitting people to finally have them.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was obviously some sort of gap that Chat for Chad really filled in our community around creating awareness about mental health and suicide,\u201d Allen said. \u201cI\u2019ve\u00a0been to a lot of the talks Wade Ringler gives, and before or after every talk,\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0always someone coming up to share their story or their struggles.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0the beautiful part \u2014 these events are giving people a place to start the difficult conversations they might not feel comfortable having otherwise.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
As Chasing Clarity continues to grow, its mission\u00a0remains\u00a0the same: keep people talking, moving, and supporting one another.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIf anyone wants to join, they\u2019re welcome,\u201d Chirico said. \u201cWe meet at the brewery at 5:30 a.m. on Tuesdays \u2014 anyone can come out, whether you walk, jog, or run, even as the weather cools, this group still meets all year long.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Sullivan said that openness is\u00a0what\u2019s\u00a0helped the group thrive.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s really important for everyone to know that this group is growing and it\u2019s big,\u201d he said. \u201cThis is just a few of the guys that did that long, crazy race \u2014 but there are people of all interest levels in running.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0not just us.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0a community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Chirico smiled when asked how big that community has become.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBroadly, I\u2019d say around 25 people,\u201d he said. \u201cBut if you count everyone helping out \u2014 we\u2019re closer to 40 or 50.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
For a group that started with early-morning trail runs and an idea to spark conversation, Chasing Clarity has become a reminder that connection, compassion, and community can begin one step and one story at a time.\u00a0<\/p>\n