Fallen soldiers remembered

Heather Ainsley
ECB Publishing, Inc.

In just three days time, individuals from local service organizations, runners and volunteers traveled over 170 miles on foot in honor of fallen military service members who have ties to the state of Florida. From the morning of Feb. 10 to the evening of Feb. 12, runners made their way from the Florida Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Tallahassee all the way to the Veterans Memorial Wall in Jacksonville, stopping every mile at specially marked stops along the way, called Hero Markers.
This journey, called Florida Run for the Fallen, is a statewide relay foot run that serves as a tribute to every Florida military service member who has died while serving, or as a result of serving during the War on Terror, since Oct. 12, 2000. Runners participating in this year's run paused at one-mile intervals at the Hero Markers, and spoke aloud the names of each fallen service member, their date of death and their branch of service. Family members, friends, and patriots from the communities were welcomed and encouraged to wait at any marker, in order to meet the runners and hear each name be spoken in a short, honorary ceremony.
According to the pledge on the Florida Run for the Fallen website, “We run dedicated miles to honor and remember each fallen hero who died since the GWOT began. However, regardless of war or conflict, branch of service or cause of death, we ultimately run for them all. We honor their service and sacrifice, and remember that they each gave up a future so that we could have ours. We give tribute to them by name wherever possible and to the sacrifice of the families they left behind.”
Families of the fallen heroes are referred to as Gold Star Families. Any Gold Star family members were encouraged to stand by their loved one's marker to be met, honored and comforted personally by the runners. Any photographs, Honor and Remember flags, banners, posters or extended family and friends were also welcomed and encouraged.
Monticello Gold Star wife, Angela Drzewiecki Enis endured a morning of chilly mist and rain as she waited by her husband's Hero Marker on Friday, Feb. 10. It didn't take long for the runners to make their way steadily to where she waited at Marker 29, which was located at 715 W. Washington St.
Her husband, SSGT Carl P. Enis, was killed in Iraq in March of 2018. Amidst the high emotions of the morning, Angela described the run as a wonderful event that gives the grieving families another way to remember and honor the memories of their loved ones. Angela was joined by her mother, as well as Combat Veteran Ray Benya, who served in the U.S. Navy during Desert Storm; Tom Zimmerly, who served in the Marine Corp during Vietnam; and Frank Aolb, who served for 22 years in the U.S. Navy. Together, the group met with runners and honored PFC Tristan R. Creamer, PFC Michael R. Creighton-Weldon, SPC Bernard W. Creque, CPT Jordan A. Crockett, SGT David A. Croft Jr. and PO1 Damon A. Crooks along with Mr. Enis at that marker.
For a complete list of Hero Markers and Heros honored in this year's Run for the Fallen, visit florida.usarunforthefallen.org. This year, the Run for the Fallen honored and remembered over 70 Jefferson County military personnel who have been lost as a result of their sacrifice and service to their country. In the hearts of their friends, families and even those who never met these men and women, their memory lives on. We remember them with honor and dignity. May the sacrifices they have made never be forgotten by the people of our nation.