Heroes In Transition’s (HIT) 9th Annual Ruck4HIT may be nearly six months away, but preparations are already underway to make it the most successful one yet. The nonprofit is holding an Info Session on Monday, November 6 at 6 pm at Cape Gun Works in Hyannis, to provide details about the event and ways people can support it by fielding a team; participating as a runner, night support runner, or driver; serving as a volunteer; or by sponsoring the Ruck4HIT.
“The Info Session is a great way to learn what the Ruck4HIT is, the symbolism behind the rucksacks that runners wear during the race, and the impact the event has on HIT’s programs,” said Heroes In Transition Executive Director Nicole Spencer. “This is our organization’s biggest fundraising event of the year. The funds raised make such a meaningful difference in the lives of active service members, veterans, and military families in our community.”
Attendees at the Info Session will meet new Ruck4HIT Volunteer Coordinators Trish and Mark McGrory of Mashpee. The couple encourage people to get involved in the event in any way that they can.
A veteran who served in the Marine Corps Reserve, Mark has run the Ruck4HIT twice, in 2018 and 2019; that last year, his wife was a driver on his team. “I’m so excited to assist as a Volunteer Coordinator because I love the event. I love the mission and I appreciate the sincerity and hard work that those involved bring to our community and to those men and women who have given so much of themselves for others,” Mark said.
“Volunteering does not require hours of training or carrying a 10- or 20-pound ruck, but it does require heart, compassion, and unselfish caring,” Trish said.
The pair will be responsible for overseeing volunteers who will man nearly 70 runner exchanges throughout Cape Cod.
The Ruck4HIT is a relay race which will start in Bourne, on Friday, April 26, 2024, and conclude in Mashpee, on Saturday, April 27. Teams consisting of a minimum of 7 runners and 2 drivers will pass through every town on Cape Cod over the course of roughly 36 hours.
Each runner runs a 2- to 4-mile leg while wearing a 10- to 20-pound rucksack on their back before switching off with the next runner. The rucksack is symbolic of the burdens our country’s active duty military, veterans, military spouses, and their children carry with them in service to our country.
Funds raised go to support HIT, a Mashpee-based nonprofit that has 14 different programs which assist over 1,400 individuals on an annual basis. HIT was founded by Cyndy Jones and her husband, the late Kenneth Jones, following the death of their only son, Marine Captain Eric A. Jones, who was killed in a helicopter crash while flying a combat mission in Afghanistan in October 2009.
“I appreciate that HIT proactively assists our veterans when they need it most,” said Mark. “HIT is instrumental to the men and women who need help today. That is their mission and I’m glad to participate in that mission any way I can.”
Anyone interested in learning more about the Ruck4HIT and ways they can support the event should visit www.Ruck4HIT.org.
Along with the Info Session on November 6, HIT will be holding a Virtual Info Session on Wednesday, December 6, at 6 pm. Anyone who wants to register for either session should email ruck@heroesintransition.org.
