JSRC Remembrance Run/Walk to be held Saturday, March 24

 The first annual JSRC Remembrance Run/Walk will be held on Saturday, March 24 at 9:45 AM at Holmdel Park .  At 9:45 , we will have a ceremony during which any JSRC member present may express your thoughts about any of our deceased members.  Following that, we will begin our run or walk (your choice) through the Holmdel Park 5K course, or as much of it as you wish to cover.  Afterwards, we will provide refreshments (hot chocolate and snacks.)   Of course, any member is welcome to attend even if you do not intend to run or walk that day.  With that in mind, we will need members to RSVP so that we will have enough refreshments – see below. 

 - Why are we conducting this event?  It is our members that make the club what it is.  It is not the number of races we are involved with or even the size of the events which we conduct.  Many of us feel that those who have passed away were very special people.  Sadly, the list will only grow.  For those of us who do wish to gather and remember these friends, we are establishing this new event.  As we want the focus to be a tribute to our departed members, we felt that a special group run (rather than a race or one of our weekly group runs) was the best choice for this.  Prior to this, we have done race tributes for some, but not all, of our departed members.  This will be an opportunity for us to reflect on and remember all of our departed JSRC runners in a sincere and dignified manner. 

 - Why this date?  It is the first Saturday of spring, which seems to be a good time for this.  Historically, there are no major races in Monmouth County that day.  The weather is starting to warm up and the snow/ice is usually melted.  Spring is also a spiritual revival for many of us.  That makes it a good time to remember our friends who are no longer with us.   

 - Why Holmdel Park ?  It is the running mecca of NJ.  It is also the site where Dave Zurheide and John MacGillivray conducted the first JSRC 9/11 Memorial Run in 2002.  We remember how running through Holmdel Park for that tribute made us feel.  In subsequent years, we will endeavor to rotate the JSRC Remembrance Run/Walk to some of the other great running parks that our membership enjoys using. 

 So that we will have an adequate amount of refreshments for you, if you plan to attend this tribute - please RSVP to John MacGillivray at JMacRuns@AOL.com by March 21.  If you wish to say something about any of our deceased members, please let John know which member as well. 

 Additionally, we plan to compile a list of JSRC members who have passed away.  The list is probably longer than any of us realize.  Please let John know any names that you have and the year that the member passed away.  If you have any thoughts as to what you would like to see included in this tribute, please let John know that as well. 

 We look forward to seeing our members gather on March 24 to pay tribute to and celebrate the lives of our departed friends.