FORTVILLE — Two runners carried the colors at the front of the pack; one bearing the stars and stripes, the other waving the Indiana state flag.
The small group of joggers trotted along State Road 36 between Fortville and McCordsville, with a local police escort bringing up the front and rear. One marathoner kept up the pace in a sports wheelchair.
Hancock County was one stop of many, said Jon Bellona, one of the runners leading the pack. They’re running a relay foot run across the country for those who sacrificed everything; the men and women from across the U.S. who lost their lives in the War on Terror.
The organization’s nationwide trek began at Fort Irwin, California April 7, Bellona said. Hundreds of core runners were recruited and rotated, with the main group consistently running about 50 miles a day on their set route across America, which will conclude in Arlington National Cemetery August 5, he said.
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The Run for the Fallen organization has identified nearly 20,000 service members who died while serving or as a result of serving in the War on Terror since October of 2000, according to the group’s website.
While all participants are in good physical condition, a few said that they are relatively new to cross-country running; but their beginner status didn’t prevent them from joining the group’s ranks, they said.
The core team of marathon runners have stopped at one-mile intervals at pre-placed markers along the way, briefly stopping to speak out loud the name of a fallen service member, Bellona said.
Their team is often greeted by friends and family members of the fallen servicemen and women at these checkpoints, they said.
Once in a while a family member will join the runners when they arrive at the mile checkpoint dedicated to their loved one, they said.
A few Hoosiers joined the core group as they passed through Fortville and McCordsville Tuesday. Vick Zickerman, from Churubusco, Indiana, said that while he never served in the military himself, he was an Army brat, and grew to appreciate the selfless nature of military service.
Their tribute is the very least they can offer, he said.
“We’re doing this to honor and remember service members who gave their lives for us,” he said. “It was their sacrifice, those from all services, all branches.”
The organization always welcomes outside support for their mission. Those interested in volunteering can visit their website: www.runforthefallen.org/faq.
