OLD ORCHARD BEACH — Among the 30,000 runners of the 126th Boston Marathon on April 18 will be Chris Meyer, a real estate developer and retired Dover, New Hampshire, police officer who lives in Old Orchard Beach.

Meyer, 49, said he has been running for about 25 years.

“I used to do triathlons, I do some road races when the schedule allows,” he said by phone on Monday.

His last 26.2 mile run was in 2016, when he ran the New York City Marathon.

“It was brutal,” he said of that experience. “I was ill prepared, but I got through it. I’m glad I did it.”

Meyer has been training for the Boston event, running — so far about 12 miles has been the most in one go — and he also walks between 20 and 25 miles a week.

He will be part of the YMCA of Greater Boston’s marathon team. Meyer will be raising money to support the Y’s Achievers program, Youth and Government and Leaders Club, all designed specifically for teens.

During the last seven years of his career as a Dover police officer, Meyer managed the city’s youth services division that included a large at-risk youth center that served the region.

“I have a strong understanding of the value of such programming,” he said of what the YMCA of Greater Boston offers, “and the importance of sponsorship and community partnerships to see success in supporting teens.”

He was asked to join the Y team by a former police intern who worked with him in Dover. She is now a physician’s assistant.

All fundraising by members of the Y’s marathon team directly supports YMCA Teen programs, said Sean Flanagan on behalf of the YMCA of Greater Boston.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis in March 2020, the YMCA of Greater Boston provided employment for over 900 teens, as well as academic assistance, life skills advancement and healthy fun, said Flanagan.

For more information on how to support Meyer and the YMCA of Greater Boston Marathon Team, visit: https://www.givengain.com/cc/ymcaboston/

“I always wanted to run Boston,” said Meyer. Now, come April 18, he will.

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