Stoneham honors vets with Veteran’s Day Road Race
Published on November 7th, 2001
STONEHAM, MA - In 1936 Stoneham’s American Legion Post 115 organized an extraordinary event on Armistice Day, Nov. 11.
A large parade left Stoneham Square in the afternoon and marched to 11 streets where they dedicated memorials to 10 Stoneham citizens who were killed during World War I and one Stoneham patriot killed during the Spanish War. These 11 squares serve as a lasting tribute to honor these American lads, who in answering their call to duty paid the ultimate sacrifice for freedom - dying for their country on the field of battle.
This Veterans’ Day the American Legion Post 115 will once again host an event of historic caliber as it presents the second annual running of the Veteran’s Memorial Road Race, which happens to be the only USA Track and Field certified 11k course running in all of America. The theme for the race is “We Remember – remembering our veterans; past, present and future into the millennium.”
This year’s event will include a two-mile "Walk for a Vet" led by Selectman Darin Leahy. Spectators will be greeted to the cadence of 32 chief petty officers from the Brunswick, Maine Naval Air Station as they run the 6.8-mile course in military formation.
Look for runners wearing their red white and blue race bibs and special number sequencing. The "military division" will have a lower sequence of numbers beginning with the number one and are shaded with a yellow background to identify these honored runners more clearly. The regular division runners will be sequenced with numbers beginning at 500, and walkers are sequenced with numbers that begin in the 1,100 series. The chief petty officers will be easily recognized by their unique sound (cadence) and the Navy t-shirts they will all be wearing.
After the race there will be an exhibition and awards ceremony inside Stoneham’s Town Hall that is open to all. Exhibitors include recruiters from the Air Force, Army, Marines and Navy along with a display from Stoneham Boy Scouts. Other exhibitors include the Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis, VFW 620 Ladies Auxiliary, Marathon Sports, the Fire Department including a special appearance by "Sparky," and the Police Department’s Officer McGruff, the Crimestopper. Light refreshments will be available, and there will be a raffle drawing following a special awards presentation led by Colonel David Peters of Hanscom Air Force Base.
Runners, walkers and spectators are all encouraged to come out this Veterans’ Day and be a part of the event to help honor our veterans and active duty personnel. For more information on the race, e-mail to info@vets11k.org or log on at www.vets11k.org or contact Founder and Race Director, Natalee Webb at 781-279-4970.
Runners may obtain a race application at the American Legion located at 11 Common Street in Stoneham, by logging onto www.coolrunning.com or may register online using a credit card at www.active.com. Race day registration for walkers and runners opens at 9 a.m. at the American Legion.
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