P.R. Halligan Post 163’s Heroes March sees 124 participants come together to raise mental health awareness.
In an effort to both engage with its community while raising awareness about post-traumatic stress disorder, P.R. Halligan American Legion Post 163 in North Platte, Neb., conducted its first Heroes March in June 2024. The event consisted of a six- and a 12-mile ruck march carrying 35-pound packs, as well as six- and 12-mile runs and coincided with PTSD Awareness Month.
And after drawing more than 100 participants, post members knew they wanted to do something similar again this year. And once again, it was a success.
Post 163’s June 7 Heroes March featured 124 registered participants and didn’t just focus on PTSD. This year the event also provided a outlet to share the Legion’s Be the One veteran suicide prevention program.
Co-Race Director Joe Wiezorek, Post 163’s immediate past commander, said the post wanted to capitalize off the momentum from special designations for the months of May and June.
“The Be the One mission is important. Just right off the heels of Mental Health Awareness Month (in May), and with PTSD Awareness Month, we wanted to get it out there,” said Wiezorek, Nebraska’s District 5 vice commander. “One of the big things for me is I’ve had friends who have been lost to suicide. And then recently, the day before (the Heroes March), I had a friend who had a problem with alcoholism and ended up in organ failure and shut down and lost his life. That made it more meaningful.
“But I think it’s really important to get it out there talk about just trying to get the stigma away and raise awareness for the cause.”
This year’s event again included both six- and 12-mile rucks, as well as six- and 12-mile runs. The weight of the rucks were scaled, based on age, spanning from five pounds for participants ages 70 and over to 35 pounds for military-age participants. For youth participants, the ruck weight starts at five pounds for ages 12 and under and goes up from there.
During the event, new Post 163 Commander Jason Bayne spoke about the importance of raising awareness about mental health struggles among not only the military and veteran communities, but also among first responders and health-care workers. He also shared information about Be the One and its mission to encourage reaching out to veterans who may be in crisis.
“I believe PTSD is such a big thing. They say … like one out of 10 people have it. Well, I think it’s probably a lot higher than that because a lot of people don’t seek help,” said Post 163 Adjutant John Miles, who served as co-director of the event. “And it’s not just military members. It’s doctors, nurses, first responders. Maybe even a divorce or something like that could cause it. So I think it’s such a big issue across the nation and something that we need to be more aware of.”
The event had multiple sponsors, including Peg Leg Brewing, North Platte OBGYN (which ran an aid station), Investment Service Center, Brother’s Tavern and Platte River Fitness Series. Post 163 also reached out to other veteran service organizations, resulting in Disabled American Veterans Chapter 3 and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 1504 also coming in as sponsors.
Partnering with local entities has been a focus for Post 163, Wiezorek said, noting this week he’d provided a flag etiquette presentation to North Platte’s Rotary Club. “I’ve been the commander for the last three years,” he said. “We’ve talked about different ways to be part of the community. We tried various things, and this ruck march, at first I thought John was out of his mind – ‘How are we going to get this off the ground?’ But it was such a success.
“Part of that was due to Platte River Fitness … and partnering with them. It really was partnerships, and without that I don’t think we’d have the number of people participate that we did. Those relationships are going to build the post. They’re aware that we’re here. They’re aware that we’re active. And if we have another cause that that they may be interested in, they may donate to that.”
Post 163 also now is looking at starting a Junior Shooting Sports, as well as possibly sponsoring an American Legion Baseball team.
“It’s easy to say ‘no.’ But if it’s important enough, you should say yes and find a way to do it,” Wiezorek said. “Somehow, we found a way to make this work.”
- Be the One