Grant Van Ranst is running to support Hopkinton Youth Soccer after the organization received its first Boston Marathon bib this year.

Grant Van Ranst takes Boston Marathon run on behalf of Hopkinton Youth Soccer seriously.

“I’m not going to ask great things from the players and from the coaches and our board if I’m not willing to put myself forward and risk some of myself to get us where we want to go,” he said.

This sense of purpose has driven Van Ranst as he prepares to run with the organization’s first charity bib. It’s an honor the stay-at-home dad earned following a conversation with HYS president Michelle Midkiff.

“I asked Michelle [about a marathon bib] and she said we’ve never had one,” Van Ranst explained. 

He is tasked with raising $10,000 for the youth soccer organization (hopkintonsoccer.org). The money he raises will go toward funding scholarships, equipment, league fees and maintenance. It also will bolster the program’s overall infrastructure as the organization continues to grow. 

As of March 28, Van Ranst had raised 67% of his target goal. (givengain.com/project/grant-raising-funds-for-hopkinton-youth-soccer-115128)

HYS boasts a roster of 1,600 players. Van Ranst noted that many of the children in the program are first-generation athletes, and soccer is their first introduction to group athletics. He said that the organization is continuing to grow and credited Midkiff for her leadership.

“She takes care of some things before I even know to ask about them,” said Van Ranst, who also is involved with HYS as a coach. “Michelle’s … building a wonderful infrastructure for us.”

Van Ranst’s enthusiasm for the program is not singular. He noted that, while he was the lucky recipient of the first HYS bib, there was significant interest from other volunteers and people involved with the soccer program.

“I hope we can have people going every year,” Van Ranst said about hopes to keep the charity bib program going for HYS.

Van Ranst’s evangelism for HYS and soccer in general come from his history with the sport. A native of Wayland, he began playing after tagging along with a friend to a soccer practice. He continued to play in Wayland’s soccer programs throughout high school, eventually helping to contribute to his team’s state championship in 2001.

“We were good,” he recalled. “We always ran hard. … We weren’t always better, but we were harder because we chose to be.”

Bitten by the soccer bug, Van Ranst continued to play, eventually moving into a coaching role with HYS after his family moved to Hopkinton several years ago. His children now play, and he noted a discomfort over staying on the sidelines as they participate in youth soccer.

“I can’t stand to be on the sidelines and not contribute to the form of soccer,” he explained. “I don’t have the right to chirp from the sidelines if I’m not willing to volunteer to be a coach or assistant coach.”

Marathon training ‘brutal’

Despite Van Ranst’s athletic background, training for the Boston Marathon has not come easy for him. “I’m not a runner,” he said. “It’s hard, it’s long, it’s brutal.”

Van Ranst recounted that he had begun running casually for about a year or so before the opportunity to race for HYS presented itself. He said he connected with two local runners, Alex Stenquist and Mark Agostinelli, who brought him into the fold and encouraged him to pick up running.

“Alex and Mark had kindly asked here and there if and when I would run the marathon,” he recalled.

He also stated that Hopkinton’s close relationship with marathon running was an influencing factor. “Here in Hopkinton, it’s the hills, it’s the community, and it’s the marathon,” he said. “It’s hard to have a reason not to do it.”

Van Ranst said his training has been going well, despite some knee issues. He reported dealing with some strain on his knee after his first 16-mile run but intends on being gentle with his body. With the help of his wife and ChatGPT, along with guidance from Agnostelli and Stenquist, he developed a program that he believes will prove effective.

He gave particular credit to Stenquist, who he noted is a “strong participant” of women’s running groups in Hopkinton. “Alex is my running Yoda,” Van Ranst mused.

As a stay-at-home dad, Van Ranst has had to navigate his training around raising his three children, a duty he relishes. 

“I get to be with my kids all the time,” he said. “It can be a lot, but I know that it’s a fleeting commodity every day, so I try and treat it as such.”

Van Ranst took on his role as a stay-at-home parent after realizing he didn’t have a passion for his previous line of work. He stated he and his wife, Krysta, enjoy the dynamic with her as the primary provider of income while he takes care of the kids. 

“She’s amazing,” Van Ranst said. “She owns her own business and she grinds hard every day for herself and everyone around her.” 

Krysta runs her learning and development consulting company from home, so both parents get plenty of time with their children. “We’re both with the kids a lot, but it’s by design,” he noted.

Van Ranst added that this dynamic has allowed marathon training to become a “smooth addition” to their lives. He views his training as an outlet and a measure of how much he can work on himself.

As far as timing for the marathon goes, Van Ranst mostly is focused on completion. “You just prepare as much as you can and let the chips fall where they may,” he said.

He added, however, that he would love to complete the marathon in under four hours if his knee can hold up.

Fundraising features variety

For Van Ranst, fundraising is just another piece of what it takes to run the Boston Marathon. “I don’t mind,” he said. “I don’t like being ‘sell-y’ but at the same time, I have to make people aware.”

Already, Van Ranst has hosted a soccer hour at Forekicks in Marlborough and sold Super Bowl squares. According to his fundraising page, the soccer event raised around $1,000 while the squares netted around $2,000. He hoped his last two fundraisers would push him over his $10,000 goal.

One of those fundraisers is a raffle for gift certificates and coupons from Hopkinton businesses. Van Ranst noted that the total value of the package is between $750-$1,000. His other major raffle features a basketball signed by Boston Celtics guard Jaylen Brown, one of the top players in the NBA.

The money Van Ranst raises will support the 1,600 children involved with HYS programs. And while he is eager to get on the course on Marathon Monday, he said the organization and its impact are his primary motivating factor.

“I’m more so running because I believe in the cause and I believe in town soccer,” said Van Ranst. He extolled the virtues of soccer as “the world’s sport” and stressed the importance of teaching children teamwork.

“I want to put our best foot forward for representing Hopkinton and what athletics should be at its core,” he said.

Added Van Ranst: “I run to try and provide the same experience, in many ways, that I had.”