Events
Description
Come Run/Walk for our Veterans during Mental Health Awareness Month in historic Midway on May 9th!
Heal Our Heroes 5K Run/Walk, Saturday, May 9, 2020 at 8:30am in Midway, Kentucky
Our Race Features:
- Scenic, country course through horse country with start/finish near historic downtown Midway, KY
- Commemorative race T-shirts
- Overall & Age Group Awards (custom race dog tags, see below)
- 5K Run/Walk, 1 Mile (untimed) Fun Walk, Kids Hero Dash (1/4 Mile) and Virtual Runner/Walker opportunity
- Special rate for our veterans and active duty military
- Food, fun and fellowship for a great cause!
- Start a social team or join an existing team to expand your fun
WHY WE ARE DOING THIS
"May is mental health awareness month and I am hosting a 5K to raise money for veteran outreach programs and raising awareness of the importance of mental health. All of the proceeds will go to non profit veteran programs, the primary recipient being Active Heroes (www.ActiveHeroes.org), which has a variety of programs including a big nature retreat for veterans and their families. Their vision is to eliminate military/veteran suicide. In the last several years mental health has been slowly gaining the recognition it deserves in the veteran community. The more and more awareness we can raise, we will continue to move forward on a path to ending the stigma, and getting veterans the help they need and deserve. I feel our 5K is a great way to do that! As a wife to a combat veteran, I truly understand the importance of mental health, and getting our veterans on the path to healing themselves, this is a cause that means a lot to me." -- Amanda Reho, Race Organizer
5K PROPOSED ROUTE
Place
Midway, KY US 40347
Active Heroes --- Our Race Charity Beneficiary
Our race will benefit Active Heroes.
Active Heroes is an IRS approved 501c3 Charity with the mission to support all U.S. military service members, veterans and their families through physical, educational, and emotional programs in an effort to eliminate suicide. Active Heroes’ vision is to eliminate military/veteran suicide.
The Story of Active Heroes
On the morning of December 7, 1941, Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. It was a devastating attack that emboldened many Americans to help our Nation. The next morning, 3 brothers walked 30 miles From Raywick, KY to Lebanon, KY to sign up to fight.
All the brothers were separated and sent to different locations. Joseph Leake spent most of the war in the Pacific ocean supplying our troops in the Army. After the war ended, all of the brothers survived and returned home to begin a life working in factories.
Years went by and Joseph suffered from depression and symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. In 1980, Joseph committed suicide.
Joseph Leake’s grandson, Troy Yocum grew up not fully understanding why his grandfather would think that suicide was the only way out. After joining the Army and deploying to Iraq, Yocum came to realize that his friends were experiencing similar issues that his grandfather had. Yocum decided to make it his personal mission to help struggling veterans and their family members to reduce veteran suicide numbers.
Yocum came up with a plan to raise awareness and funds to help military families by hiking across America. He began the 17-month journey, dubbed the “Hike for Heroes”, on April 17, 2010 and finished more than 7,800 miles across 37 states on September 3rd, 2011. Yocum became the first veteran to ever walk the length of 3 times across America and was awarded the Citizen Honors Medal by the Congressional Medal of Honor Society. The hike garnered national attention for veteran suicide awareness, raised $1.3 million for military families and helped to create the charity named Active Heroes to continue a mission to end veteran suicide.
Since the inception of Active Heroes, the programs have adapted to identify the triggering points associated with veteran suicide. Active Heroes has national programs in every state and regional programs serving with locations.
Active Challenges – Free events, seminars and Team Leader trainings for every state.
Peer mentors, business partners and resources in every state
A Military Family Retreat Center located in Shepherdsville, KY
A Military Family Community Center in Louisville, KY
Our Age Group Awards --- Custom Made Heal Our Heroes 5K Dog Tags
We'll present awards for Overall Top 3 M/F and Top 3 M/F in 5 year age divisions. Our age group awards will be custom made race dog tags. Overall winners will receive a dog tag plus and additional award for their accomplishment. Do you have what it takes?
Race Contact Info
If you have any questions about this race, click the button below.
Directions
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Race Participant Survey
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