Sixteen Eastern Kentucky University ROTC cadets, along with five cadets from the University of the Cumberlands, participated in the Mountain Man Memorial March on April 20 in Gatlinburg, Tenn.
The 26.2-mile track through the city and into Smoky Mountains National Park is an event to honor fallen soldiers and their families. Each team carries a gold star flag signed by the family, as well as a photograph and biography of the soldier. The cadets participating in the marathon and half-marathon (running and rucking) spent weeks training before classes, sometimes as early as 3 a.m., to be prepared for the event.
EKU participants were: Logan Hart, Highland Heights; Jake Buerger, Union; Adam Thompson, Radcliff; Jacob Mangan, Kevin Hemmelgarn, Jeffrey Cutrer and Ben Cuthbertson, Louisville; Martin Mudd, Bardstown; Dylan Baine, Independence; Bryan Buttry, Hendersonville, Ohio; Kayla Verett, Beavercreek, Ohio; J.P. Gramig, Honolulu, Hawaii; Zachary Creutzinger, Cincinnati, Ohio; Beth Fariello, Elizabethtown; Victoria Powell, Madison, Ala.; and Ashleigh Livingston, Richmond.
Livingston finished the 26-mile individual run in first place for her age division, and Fariello and Powell completed the full marathon in first and second place, respectively. Creutzinger, third in the full marathon, received fifth place in the individual military heavy category.
The Mountain Man Memorial March began in 2008 when University of Tennessee students marched for their fallen peer, 1st Lt. Frank Walkup. EKU ROTC cadets have marched for the last four years, with the full marathon team marching three years for Sgt. 1st Class Harvey Crabtree and the half marathon team for Pfc. James McClamrock.
Published on May 01, 2013
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