Oklahoma priest to compete in half Ironman to raise money for diocese’s senior living center

Oklahoma priest the Rev. Bryan Beard, shown here after completing a 13.1-mile half marathon in November 2025, will take part in the March 15 inaugural half Ironman in Little Elm, Texas. He is using the race to raise funds for Saint Simeon’s Senior Community in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Photo: Courtesy of Bryan Beard

[Episcopal News Service] An Oklahoma priest is in the final stages of training to compete on March 15 in his first half Ironman, which consists of 70.3 miles of swimming, biking and running. But rather than just making a personal effort, he also is raising money for Saint Simeon’s Senior Community in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a mission of the Episcopal Diocese of Oklahoma.

The Rev. Bryan Beard is the part-time vicar of Church of the Holy Cross in Owasso, Oklahoma, about 15 miles northeast of Tulsa. He also works full time for Avis, the car rental company.

Beard, who is 52, told Episcopal News Service that his journey to this race began about two years ago, when he decided to get better control of his health. He has had Type 2 diabetes for about 15 years, and by early 2024 both his blood sugar numbers and his weight were too high. So, he changed what he ate and drank, and he began exercising more.

He started with some short walks and riding his indoor bike. As his fitness level increased, walking turned into running, along with extended outdoor bike rides. And with the thought of a possible triathlon on his mind, he started swimming.

But what made that type of race something Beard would even consider, he said, was the discipline he’d developed from saying Morning and Evening Prayer every day. “That really helped show me some of the mental things I think that I needed to do” for a triathlon, he said, by taking what he experienced from a spiritual standpoint and applying it in a physical way.

“That’s really been a source of strength for me all throughout this,” he said.

To keep himself motivated in his fitness journey, Beard signed up for some races, starting with runs and bike races of increasing distance, and then added an Olympic-distance triathlon (about 32 miles) and eventually a half marathon run (13.1 miles) in November 2025. After successfully completing those, he signed up for the March 15 inaugural half Ironman in Little Elm, Texas, about 30 miles north of Dallas.

When asked about his training, he acknowledged that while long runs and bike rides are hard, his biggest challenge has been swimming. “Technique really matters in swimming,” he said, whereas with running and biking, “you can just kind of put your head down and push through.”

And every race has taught him lessons in pacing, nutrition and hydration.

The Rev. Bryan Beard wears this bracelet when training or taking part in races. The words, he says, help him tap into a feeling of God’s presence. Photo: Courtesy of Bryan Beard

Preparing for an endurance race also helps him balance his busy life as a part-time priest and a full-time corporate employee. While he is training, “your whole world just sort of shrinks to the next step, the next pedal, the next stroke in the pool,” he said. “It’s a really great way to calm my mind.”

For additional motivation during workouts and in races, Beard looks no farther than the band on his Garmin watch, which is engraved with the citation for Ephesians 3:20-21: “Now to him who by the power at work within us can accomplish abundantly far more than all we can ask or imagine, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

“I’ve really latched on to the idea of being able to do more than we can even imagine when we do that through God,” he said. “And so that’s been extremely powerful for me.”

In addition, he wears an  orange silicone bracelet that says, “Breathe, Pray, Keep Going.” During longer training runs or bike rides – the ones you count in hours and not minutes, he said – those four words help him feel God’s presence.

Beard added a fundraising component to his Ironman race because he wanted it to be not just about himself but something that could help others. He drew inspiration from the way his parents “lovingly” cared for his maternal grandmother who lived with them during the latter years of her life, even when Alzheimer’s disease made that a challenge.

Their experiences prompted him to think of Saint Simeon’s, which he said not only provides care to senior citizens but also gives them the opportunity to be in community together, something he called “so important and so meaningful.”

Working with the senior community’s development director, Beard set up a fundraising page that allows people to give set amounts or a donation per mile, all to support Saint Simeon’s mission to provide faith-based, compassionate care for residents, including those living with Parkinson’s disease and other challenges.

Through all his efforts and training, Beard said he is grateful to have developed a daily discipline of setting apart both time and space for prayer every morning and evening, as well as for physical activity. That combination, along with sticking to them over time, has become crucial to his well-being, he said, no matter what race may be next on his list.

— Melodie Woerman is an Episcopal News Service freelance reporter based in Kansas.