Laura Young
ECB Publishing, Inc.
On Friday, Feb. 6, a team of more than 20 marathon-trained athletes will embark on a 176-mile, three-day journey from Tallahassee to Jacksonville to honor every service member with ties to Florida who lost their lives since the bombing of the U.S.S. COLE in 2000, which marks the beginning of the War on Terror.
The 6th Annual Florida Run for the Fallen will start in Leon County at 7 a.m. on Friday morning at the Florida Vietnam Veterans Memorial, located at 463-489 S. Monroe St. in Tallahassee. From there, relay runners will stop at each Hero Marker spaced approximately one mile apart along the way to Jacksonville. When the runners stop at each marker, they will perform a short tribute ceremony for the fallen and recognize any waiting Gold Star family, friends, comrades and community members.
Runners will proceed through Leon, Jefferson, Madison, Suwannee, Columbia, Baker, Nassau and Duval counties to finish at the Veterans Memorial Wall in Jacksonville, Fla., at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 8.
Members of American Legion Post 49 in Monticello will host a table 715 W. Washington St. (Marker 29) beginning at 11:30 a.m. The Post invites the community to “Come out and support this wonderful event supporting the Veterans of Florida who made the ultimate sacrifice and their Gold Star families.”
On Day 1 (Friday, Feb. 6) the runners can be seen coming along Hwy. 90 through Jefferson County from around 11:24 a.m. until around 1 p.m. They will pass through downtown Monticello around noon. Residents are encouraged to gather along the east, west and south sides of the Courthouse Circle from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. to show support for the fallen and the runners. For those who want to plan to be at a specific marker in Jefferson County when the runners stop and perform a tribute, the full list is as follows:
Friday, 11:24 a.m. - Marker 24 – 0.125 miles east of corner of Hwy 90 and Desersey Rd.
Friday, 11:35 a.m. - Marker 25 - 3891 W. Washington St.
Friday, 11:46 a.m. - Marker 26 - across from 2960 W. Washington St.
Friday, 11:57 a.m. - Marker 27 - 0.20 Miles east of corner of Hwy. 90 and Old Lloyd Rd.
Friday, 12:08 p.m. - Marker 28 - across from Monticello Nurseries at 1578 Hwy. 90.
Friday, 12:19 p.m. - Marker 29 - 715 W. Washington St.
Passing around Courthouse Circle between 12:19 and 12:30 p.m.
Friday, 12:30 p.m. - Marker 30 - 1045 E. Washington St.
Friday, 12:41 p.m. - Marker 31 - 500 feet east of Hwy. 90 and Barnhart Rd.
Friday, 12:52 p.m. - Marker 32 - 0.4 miles east of Corner of Hwy. 90 and Hillside Rd.
Friday, 01:03 p.m. - Marker 33 - 0.4 miles west of Wolf Creek Bridge.
Friday, 01:14 p.m. - Marker 34 – Hwy. 90 and Julie Lane.
Friday, 01:25 p.m. - Marker 35 - 0.10 mile east of Hwy. 90 and Big Joe Rd.
Friday, 01:36 p.m. - Marker 36 - 6018 E. Washington.
Friday, 01:47 p.m. - Marker 37 - Corner of Hwy. 90 and Kinsey Rd.
Friday, 01:58 p.m. - Marker 38 - 7850 E. Washington St.
Friday, 02:09 p.m. - Marker 39 – 0.25 mile east of Hwy. 90 and Gramling.
The runners will continue on their way into Madison County, stopping to give tribute ceremonies at Hero Markers 40 through 57, where they end the first day at approximately 5:27 p.m. in front of 3866 Hwy. 90 in Madison. They will have dinner and well-deserved R and R for the evening in Madison.
Day 2 (Saturday, Feb. 7) of the Florida Run for the Fallen begins at 7 a.m at Four Freedoms Park, located at 112 Range St. in Madison. The runners will make stops at Hero Markers 58 through 114, where the day ends at approximately 5:27 p.m. in front of Coin Laundry, located at 916 Hwy. 90 in Lake City.
Day 3 (Sunday, Feb. 8) of the event begins at 7 a.m. at the corner of Hwy. 90 and 6th St. in Macclenny. Continuing on with their three-day honor tribute, the runners' effort will culminate on with a remembrance ceremony at 1 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Wall, located at 1145 E. Adams St., adjacent to TIAA Bank Field in downtown Jacksonville.
This Hero Marker and route information has been extracted from the website florida.usarunforthefallen.org, where additional marker information can be found, along with maps of the entire route and a spreadsheet with the names of the heroes honored at each marker. The site also provides detailed information about the history of the event and will have live coverage streaming over the three days.
It states: “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.”