District Judge David Reich, '82 Receives Inaugural GameChanger Award

South Central District Judge David Reich got tired of seeing the same faces in his courtroom, so he started a running program to help keep addicts from relapsing.

More than five years later, the Bismarck judge is in Ecuador with Los Angeles skid row inmates and is the inaugural winner of the GameChanger Award.

The award, which replaces the annual Tribune Awards, commends people who go above and beyond to do good works, promote change and show kindness. It was awarded Saturday at the GameChanger Ideas Festival, hosted annually by Humanities North Dakota to debate important issues and promote innovative thinking.

Reich was announced the winner for his continued work with Runners Against Destructive Decisions, or RADD, a group he formed five years ago to help people recovering from addiction.

Reich wasn't able to accept the award in person, as he and two of his RADD runners were in Ecuador to run the Guayaquil Marathon on Sunday along with Los Angeles County Judge Craig Mitchell and 20 skid row inmates who are members of Mitchell's Midnight Mission Running Club.

Local Judge Raises Money to Send Runners to Ecuador, Bismarck Tribune, Blair Emerson, March 5, 2019