NEWS
NOVEMBER 01, 2011
Why We Run: Team Travis and Brendan Honors the Fallen by Challenging the Living at 2011 Marine Corps Marathon
By Tom Sileo
Community Manager, Travis Manion Foundation
Editor, The Unknown Soldiers
Just hours before the 2011 Marine Corps Marathon and 10K kicked off on a chilly Sunday morning in the nation's capital, Team Travis and Brendan runners, volunteers, and supporters were issued a friendly challenge by Brian Stann, who was awarded the Silver Star for heroism displayed in Iraq:
"Earn it."
Stann's stirring speech clearly resonated with more than 300 attendees of the Oct. 29 Team Travis and Brendan dinner. Speaking as a decorated Marine mourning the loss of two of his best friends, Marine 1st Lt. Travis Manion and Navy Lt. (SEAL) Brendan Looney, Stann, now a professional UFC fighter, inspired everyone to jump out of bed early the next morning and run mile after mile to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.
The Travis Manion Foundation's fifth annual Marine Corps Marathon weekend gathering was filled with moving, inspiring moments. Shortly after Lt. Looney's wife, Amy, crossed the finish line and put ice on her aching knee, she was approached by one of 1st Lt. Manion's young nieces.
"How did you get that medal?" the little girl asked, pointing at the Marine Corps Marathon medal around Mrs. Looney's neck.
"I thought of your Uncle Travis...and Brendan...and I told myself I had to finish that last mile," the SEAL's widow responded with a warm smile.
The little girl nodded, clearly understanding what finishing the grueling 26.2 mile race meant.
Lieutenant Looney's mother, Maureen, delivered another one of the weekend's most thrilling moments when she crossed the finish line. Just over a year after losing her son, the Gold Star mom completed the marathon, proving to herself and everyone around her that no hill, even the brutal uphill stretch that closes the Marine Corps Marathon, is too steep to climb.
Every runner and supporter affiliated with Team Travis and Brendan had a powerful reason for participating, from suffering a personal loss to being a service member, veteran, military family member, or fervent supporter of our troops.
Monica Velez and her family flew up to the Washington, D.C. area from Texas after receiving assistance from the Travis Manion Foundation's Challenge Grant program. Velez, who lost both of her brothers, Army Cpl. Jose Velez and Army Spc. Andrew Velez in Iraq and Afghanistan, respectively, wanted to give her grieving father a reason to smile. That emotional moment occurrred when Monica crossed the finish line at the Marine Corps Marathon.
Bob Bagosy and his family made the trip up from Georgia after also receiving a Challenge Grant. The father of Sgt. Thomas Bagosy, who died in 2010, wanted to bring his wife and children together at Arlington National Cemetery for the first time to pay tribute to their fallen loved one. The family also ran together on Oct. 30 while proudly wearing their "Team Tommy" shirts, which the Travis Manion Foundation was honored to provide.
According to the Marine Corps Marathon website, 20,985 people finished the 26.2 mile race, which was won by Army 1st Lt. Charles Ware. In addition to congratulating the winner and everyone who ran the marathon and 10K, The Travis Manion Foundation also wants to recognize the top male and female finishers of Team Travis and Brendan:
Josh Elliott - 2:55:53
Kristin Blanck - 3:13:06
While Brian Stann inspired Team Travis and Brendan by appropriately channeling a quote from the memorable war film "Saving Private Ryan," another movie quote, from the legendary sports film "Hoosiers" also fits Team Travis and Brendan 2011.
"Don't get caught up thinking about winning or losing this game," Coach Norman Dale, played by Gene Hackman, said before the underdog Hickory high school basketball team takes the floor in the championship game. "If you put your effort and concentration into being the best that you can be, in my book, we're gonna be winners!"
Every member of Team Travis and Brendan, who travelled great distances to spend an early Sunday morning running through the cold, is a winner. These men and women, along with the volunteers and supporters who came out to cheer, honored America's fallen heroes by challenging themselves and those around them.
In short, they earned it.
