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Teams brave rain and cold during memorial ruck run

  • Published
  • By 1st Lt. Mark Swanson
  • Civil Air Patrol New Jersey
JOINT BASE MCGUIRE-DIX-LAKEHURST, N.J. --  They say that if it's not raining, it's not training. It was cold, about 45 degrees on Oct. 17, and it was raining. So, it must have been great training for the 75-plus teams that took part in the First Sergeants Council Third Annual Ruck March at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst.

The 75 four-man teams ran through rain along McGuire roads, starting from the 621st Contingency Response Wing building on Neely Rd.

The event honored the Gold Star Mothers from New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The American Gold Star Mothers, Inc. was founded in 1928. It is a national organization of mothers who have lost a son or daughter in service of our country. In attendance that day were 22 mothers whose sons or daughters had made the ultimate sacrifice.

Members of the Air Force, Army, Marines and Civil Air Patrol New Jersey wing participated in the run. Each team carried memorial items of fallen servicemembers, provided by the Gold Star Mothers. The items included photos, jewelry, clothing and athletic equipment.

Civil Air Patrol cadets from New Jersey proudly carried a photo and medal dedicated to Army Cpl. Steven R. Koch, from Milltown, N.J. His mother, Christine, was one of the Gold Star Mothers taking part in the event.

Awards were given in three categories: civilian, military light, and military heavy. Civilian participants wore no uniform. Military light participants wore a uniform. Military heavy participants wore a uniform and a 30 pound ruck sack.

A team from the 305th Maintenance Squadron won first place in the civilian category. A team from the USAF Expeditionary Center won in the military light category. The 6th Airlift Squadron was first place in the military heavy category. The 21st Air Mobility Operations Squadron team took second place and a team from the 87th Civil Engineering Squadron took third.

Master Sergeant Bubba Beason, the event organizer, thanked each of the mothers for attending with a small medallion made from the steal of the World Trade Center.

"Flags fly as signs of our nation's resolve," Beason said. He explained that the steel medallions are signs of nation's resolve to fight terrorism. They are small memorials to those who have fallen in that fight.

"Each one of us here today remembers the pain of Sept. 11, 2001," he said.
"The scar of that day can't be erased." This is much like the scars left when the Gold Star Mothers learned of their losses.

Chief Master Sergeant Michael Grimm from the 21st Expeditionary Task Force was the keynote speaker. He told the participants that memorials are meant to honor those who gave their lives in battle.

He concluding by reminding the audience that "there are others we should remember," like the Gold Star Mothers who bear the great burden of that loss.