The Women who run Owego, NY Published May 14, 2025 in NY Papers

 The Old Coot revisits the “Women Who Run Owego.”

By Merlin Lessler

 I wrote this article in 2005. I asked to have it re-run as a memorial to Pat Williams, who passed away in April. She was walking & running the streets, right up to the start of 2025.    

The Women Who Run Owego!

 You won’t find them in the village office, the town hall or the county legislative chamber, yet these women “run” Owego. They run the streets! You’ve all seen them one time or another – jogging along Route 17C by the Treadway Inn on a rainy morning – sailing past Riverow - coming down the hill by Johnson’s Pools on Route 434 - cresting the rise on Davis Hill or chugging along on Route 96 by the school bus garage. It’s hard to have missed them. And if you’re like me, you’ve always wondered what their “story” was, why they run and who they are. I decided to find out. At the risk of being arrested for stalking, I ran them down. 

 Let me introduce you to the “Owego Six” – the women who run Owego – (as pictured, top row – left to right – Pat Williams, Barb Morrissey, Carol Livermore – bottom row, Irene Graven, Molly Shaw, Amy Pritchard. They all run in the morning, except Barb Morrissey, who prefers the afternoon or early evening. Pat Williams is the early bird. She starts her 10-mile routine at 4-am. Carol Livermore, who also pounds out double-digit miles every day, starts her routine at a more reasonable hour, as does the rest of the Owego Six. Carol puts in several twenty-mile runs, which add up to over 100 miles per week on her internal odometer. Molly, Irene, Amy and Barb usually run about 6 miles or so, though they all are known to throw in a long run when they have the chance. Barb tries to work in a 15-mile stint to keep fit for marathons. She’ll be running her 15^th NY City Marathon on November 6, her 32^nd marathon overall. Amy Pritchard also runs competitively in marathons and other races, but the rest of the women don’t. They only run for fun, for fitness and the pleasure of starting the day on the right foot (excuse the pun). It gets their metabolisms cranked up and helps to burn off excess calories. I’ve watched them run; I know it’s true.

 Livermore and Pritchard started running when they were very young, 8 and 10 respectively. Molly started her running in high school, Pat – after finishing college, Irene when she was in her 20’s; “Marathon” Barb was 31, a smoker and determined to change her ways when she took up jogging and joined her husband on the road. If you add up all the years they’ve been running it exceeds 150. Barb, Carol, Amy and Pat have been at it for 30 years or more. This isn’t a passing fancy; it’s a way of life.

 When they aren’t on the road, running Owego, you can find them hard at work: Irene Graven is the 1^st Assistant Tioga County DA, Barb Morrissey is a nurse at Lourdes Hospital, Molly Shaw is the fruit & vegetable specialist at Cornell Cooperative Extension, Carol Livermore is both an artist and a floral designer, the latter at Ye Olde Country Florist, Amy Pritchard teaches second grade at the O.A. Elementary School in Apalachin and Pat Williams teaches high school English at Tioga Central School.

 I’ve watched them run our town for years and have always admired their grit. They have a work ethic that makes the Postal Creed look pale by comparison. They don’t just run through snow, sleet and the dark of night; they run through blizzards, tropical storms, heat waves and cold snaps where the temperature gets so low that half the cars in town won’t start. But why do they do it - day after day, year after year? It’s not an easy question to answer. It’s an internal force that drives them. It’s automatic, not a thought process. Oh sure, they can recite, and did when I asked, a list of reasons: “It’s good for my heart” – “It’s a way to unwind” – “It gives me the physical strength and mental energy to get me through my life’s other trials” – “As a working mother and a wife it’s time to myself” – “It helps me deal with stress and to lead an active physical life” – “It makes me feel 20 years younger, and much healthier than my non-exercising contemporaries.”

 The unanswered question is – Why do they stick with it and most of the rest of us don’t?   

They don’t know why, but the point is, they do. And, I must confess, when I watch these fleet footed, dedicated women sail past me on the sidewalk, I’m jealous – jealous of their stamina, dedication and grace. It’s no picnic running through the two seasons we have here: winter and monsoons. It “ain’t” no fun to run with sleet stinging your face and sleepy-eyed commuters forcing you off the road. It’s pretty obvious that it’s only a matter of time before these high caliber women will be running a lot more than the streets of Owego. If they ever decide to run the town, not just the streets, they’ve got my vote!

 Update: Barb does most of her running in Florida except when she is in town training for the New York Marathon, Carol walks the sidewalks, but mostly behind the counter at her Coffee & Art Bar on Front St., Irene walks her miles through the village these days, Molly moved to New Zealand, Amy is still at it, running with her gang all around town. Pat’s memory will remain with many of us, forever running through town, She will be missed.