Osgood runs for a healthy heart
By ROWENA PLETT
Reporter / photographer
One of the men who participated in the Old Settlers' Day 5K run was Ted Osgood of Moorefield, W. Va. He placed fifth with a time of 28 minutes 4 seconds.
"It was a well-organized event, and it's a shame that more people didn't participate," he said.
The 62-year-old man, who is a rural Florence native, was in the area to conduct special services at Florence United Methodist Church.
In 1997, Osgood suffered a heart attack and underwent three-bypass open heart surgery.
The doctor told him he needed to start walking, so he did.
After a while, walking got boring, Osgood said, so he asked the doctor if he could run. He advised him not to do it, fearing it might hurt him.
However, the boredom continued so Osgood decided to take the risk, and he started running.
He was running up to two miles per day when one day his doctor caught him at it.
He was surprised to see him doing so well and didn't try to stop him. A physical examination showed him to be in good shape. He said he weighs less than he has in a long time.
Currently, he tries to run five miles every day.
Osgood started entering 5k runs and placed in at least two. The one at Marion was his third.
He is not trying to break any records.
"I just run to finish," he said, "and I want people to know that open heart surgery is not the end of their life."
He also uses the events as an opportunity to share his beliefs with others.
His goal is to run a 5K race in all 50 states.
A look back
Osgood was born in 1940 to Cleo and Jesse Osgood. His home place was the present site of Morning Star Ranch east of Florence.
His father had 100 acres of farm ground in Marion County and an adjoining 320-acre pasture in Chase County. He also was the township assessor for many years.
Osgood's siblings are Janet Bowers, who lives at Marion County Lake, Yvonne English of Flagstaff, Ariz., and Thad Osgood of Parsons.
His mother is still living and resides at Marion Manor.
Osgood graduated from Florence High School in 1958 and spent three summers mowing county roads. Fred Koch was his boss.
He attended Southwestern College, Winfield, and obtained a degree in social science.
"I felt called to preach but it wasn't what I wanted to do," he said.
So he got a job at a grain elevator. But after about six months, he enrolled in Asbury Seminary at Wilmore, Ky., where he earned a master's degree in divinity.
He met his wife of 36 years, Sandy, while attending seminary. She is a self-employed artist. They have a son, Eric of Morgantown. Pa., and a daughter, Dana, of Dallas, Ga.
Since 1976, Osgood has served churches in Indiana, New Mexico, and West Virginia.
He retired from pastoring in June but continues to minister as a chaplain for Marketplace Ministries of Moorehead, W. Va.
The non-denominational organi-zation provides chaplains for businesses which pay for ministerial services to their employees.
Osgood is a chaplain for Pilgrim's Pride, a large chicken processing plant in Moorehead. He shares the gospel of Jesus Christ with employees and also assists them and their immediate families at funerals or weddings when needed.
One memorable experience he recently had was when he was able to prevent a divorce and help a couple to reconcile.
He said he enjoys the work very much. He also has made himself available as a general evangelist to conduct services throughout the country, as he did the previous week in his hometown of Florence.
