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By Will Bredderman
Brooklyn Daily
Some 100 soldiers and civilians took to the Shore Parkway promenade on Sept. 14 for the annual Run for the Fallen, part of a nationwide spectacle honoring soldiers killed in the line of duty.
Fort Hamilton officials, who organized the event, said that the run symbolizes carrying on the legacy of those who gave their lives in service to their country.
“We continue the steps they would have made, so to speak,” said Wallace Grant, the garrison’s director of Family, Moral Welfare, and Recreation. “They did their part, and can’t go on, so we run for them.”
The Run for the Fallen was inspired by a group of runners who ran from California to Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia in 2008 in honor of the army’s birthday — a 6,557-mile trek, each mile representing a soldier who died in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The Bay Ridge runners only jogged a fraction of that — a little more than four miles — but Grant said that the same spirit of patriotism and cooperation inspired them to unite in honor of their nation’s troops. He noted the contributions police, emergency personnel, and civilians put into helping register runners, distributing T-shirts, and handing out food and water after the race.
“Everybody came out, and helped in their way,” said Wallace. “Every year, we get together, and make it to the end.”