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One man's effort to lose weight and help Ronald McDonald House [The Akron Beacon Journal :: ](Akron Beacon Journal (OH) Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) March 30--The Big Lubinski is transforming himself into the Smaller Lubinski. Richard Lubinski is on a mission to slim down and fatten the coffers at the Ronald McDonald House at the same time. In a YouTube video that he hopes will go viral on the Internet, the man who turned 37 years old on Saturday, pokes fun at his own weight and issues a challenge to viewers to help him raise money for Ronald McDonald House of Akron at the same time. "The reason I'm making this video is because I'm fat and need to lose weight," Lubinski said at the beginning of the video. Weighing 335 pounds when he started the 100-day weight loss challenge, Lubinski acknowledged that he had a big weight problem. "Yea, that is huge," he said. Since starting the diet in February, the Twinsburg man is down 35 pounds to about 300 pounds and has raised around $1,000 in pledges out of a goal of $10,000 for Ronald McDonald House of Akron, where families of sick children stay during hospitalizations at Akron Children's Hospital. Lubinski, a real estate agent with Stouffer Realty, is also president of the Red Shoe Society of Akron, a group of young philanthropists and business people who work to support Ronald McDonald House. While his own 100-day weight loss challenge will end around Mother's Day, he hopes to eventually drop another 75 pounds. He has been working out regularly at the Akron General Medical Center's Health & Wellness Center in Stow on Allen Road. Lubinski, married and the father of three children, hopes others will take up the challenge and start their own mini fundraising drive to help Ronald McDonald House. Anne Collins, executive director of the Ronald McDonald House of Akron, said the house is in the fundraising stage of a planned $10-million expansion that will take the home from the current 20 rooms to 60 rooms. The expansion of the house is part of the Akron Children's Hospital building on the Promise Capital Campaign in which it seeks to raise $60 million, Collins said. So far, about $3.3 million has been raised for the Ronald McDonald House project, said Collins, who praised Lubinski for his efforts. "We think it's wonderful," she said. "It is a win-win. It is good for Rich. And it is great for our house." Last year, 13,000 people stayed at the Ronald McDonald House in Akron on Locust Street but 6,000 people were turned away, Collins said. "I give him much credit," she said of Lubinski's weight loss challenge. Lubinski said he wants to get word out via the Internet that there is a need to help Ronald McDonald House. "They do so much," he said. For more on Ronald McDonald House of Akron go to www.rmhakron.org. For information on the Red Shoe Society of Akron go to http://www.rmhakron.org/en/how-you-can-help/red-shoe-society. There are also Facebook pages for Ronald McDonald House and the Red Shoe Society. To donate directly to the Ronald McDonald House, send checks to Ronald McDonald House at 245 Locust St., Akron, OH 44302, attention: Anne Collins. To see Lubinksi's video go to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyLaRLJURrc&feature=em-share_video_user. To contact Lubinski, email him at [email protected] or call him at 330-622-0501. Jim Carney can be reached at 330-996-3576 or [email protected]. ___ (c)2014 the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.com Distributed by MCT Information Services |