Sep 8, 2014 3 min read

WAYNESBURG – Greene County Department of Recreation will host the 2014 Heroes Run/Walk beginning at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 20 along Greene River Trail.

Participants can sign up for the race at a rate of $18 by Friday, or pay a $20 registration fee on the day of the race. Race-day registration and packet pick-up will begin at 7 a.m. at the Greene Cove Yacht Club in Millsboro. Race T-shirts, in limited sizes and quantities, will be available for race day registrations. The race T-shirt is short-sleeved this year, and runners and walkers are asked to dress appropriately.

At the conclusion of the race, the top three male and female runners and walkers overall will receive awards, as well as the top three male and female runners and walkers in various age categories. Refreshments and a random drawing for prizes will also be held following the race.

This year’s event marks the eighth annual 5K run/walk and 15K run held in honor of Army Spc. Gregory Cox of Carmichaels and Marine Lance Cpl. Steven Phillips of Spraggs. Both men were killed in Humvee accidents in Iraq; Cox, 21, died in September 2004, and Phillips, 27, died in February 2006.

Race proceeds benefit memorial funds established in the men’s names. The Spc. Gregory A. Cox Memorial Scholarship Fund assists Greene County high school graduates entering the fields of public safety or public service, or the Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps. The Lance Cpl. Steven Phillips Memorial Fund provides support for the computer-aided drafting program at the Greene County Career and Technology Center.

Both funds are handled by the Community Foundation of Greene County.

Race proceeds also help fund the cost of transportation for Greene County veterans receiving treatment at the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System clinic in Pittsburgh.

Last year’s Heroes Run/Walk raised about $11,000, and more than 250 individuals registered. Thanks to a partnership with Central Greene School District, more than 100 employees and family members registered for the race as runners, walkers or “sleep-ins,” in which those individuals paid a registration fee but did not attend the race. The school district’s efforts raised more than $3,000.

Major sponsors of this year’s Heroes Run/Walk include Greene County commissioners, Wal-Mart, Noble Energy, Greene County Tourism, Greene Cove Marina and Rices Landing Volunteer Fire Department.

The race is coordinated by the Department of Recreation and the Cox and Phillips families.

For more information, call the Department of Recreation at 724-852-5323, or visit www.co.greene.pa.us to download a race entry form.