Meet The Team
Recovery Road Runners’ staff is a passionate and dedicated group of runners committed to making a positive impact in the recovery community. Each team member has been touched personally by addiction, and together they collectively celebrate 15 years of recovery.
Vinny is from New York. He grew up playing sports and was a competitive swimmer. He started drinking as a teenager. He partied his way out of college, went into the Navy, and then went on to have a very successful career.
He retired after a series of alcohol-fueled bad decisions.
All the while he was running and competing in triathlons, swimming, and cycling races.
He managed a 3:00 marathon in Tokyo 2010 and ran Boston in 2012 with a hangover.
Then fitness took a back seat to drinking for about 5 years. He got fat and lazy. Then he got tired of being fat, lazy, and hungover every day. He adopted a plant based vegan diet, started running again. He quit drinking cold turkey one day and did 90 meetings in 90 days. Vinny created a life bigger than alcohol. He recently qualified for Boston '24 and completed his first 100 MILE race. Vinny is still alcohol-free and plant-powered.
Amber Graziano is the passionate founder of Recovery Road Runners Nonprofit Organization. With over four years of sobriety, Amber has transformed her life and is on a mission to help others do the same. Her journey from struggle to strength has inspired countless individuals to embrace sobriety and discover the boundless opportunities it brings.
As a dedicated coach and mentor, Amber empowers runners in recovery to change their relationship with alcohol, harnessing the power of running and community to foster resilience and joy. Her innovative programs, workshops and retreats are designed to support personal transformation, demonstrating that sobriety is not a sacrifice but a vibrant, fulfilling lifestyle.
Amber's unwavering commitment to her cause, combined with her infectious enthusiasm and expertise, has established Recovery Road Runners as a beacon of hope and healing. By supporting this nonprofit, you join Amber in her mission to create a world where sobriety is celebrated, and everyone has the chance to achieve their dreams.
Stay inspired, get involved, and help us make a difference today.
Doug Fingliss is an ordinary person with an extraordinary story. As a husband, artist, musician, information technologist, entrepreneur, small business owner, skateboarder, runner, son, and friend, Doug wears many hats. Proudly embracing his imperfections, he finds joy in his multifaceted life.
Despite a challenging past, Doug is now thriving in sobriety and passionately pursuing various creative and fitness projects. He is currently involved in the ongoing Tiverton trails art gallery, a documentary about his recovery, has self-published several books, and is currently working on a sobriety through fitness themed book. Though he has taken a step back from social media, you can still connect with him on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, or Strava.
Doug's journey to sobriety began after a near-fatal incident in 2015. Overcoming a 20-year battle with alcohol, he has transformed his life through resilience and determination. Today, Doug has formed many positive habits and rituals to remain sober, happily married to an amazingly supportive partner, Erin, and focused on his mental, spiritual, and physical fitness. His running journey started with small steps and has led to remarkable achievements, including multiple personal records in races and ambitious goals for the future.
Doug's story is a testament to the power of sobriety and running in fostering a fulfilling life. He hopes to inspire others to see themselves in his journey and avoid the hardships he endured. For Doug, sobriety and running are the cornerstones of a life filled with purpose, resilience, and community.