Susan Craig holds a framed picture of the colleagues who died in a helicopter crash in 2006: Capt. Bryan Willard, 1st Lt. Brandon Dronet, Staff Sgt. Donnie Levens, Sgt. James Fordyce, Sgt. Jonathan McColley, Cpl. Matthieu Marcellus, Lance Cpl. Samuel Large Jr., Lance Cpl. Nicholas Sovie, Staff Sgt. Luis Melendez Sanchez and Senior Airman Alecia Good. Photo: Chris Emeott
Local veterans and military families run together in honor of fallen heroes.
On February 17, 2006, Marine Pilot Susan Craig was serving her country in Africa when the helicopter she was flying crashed. She was one of two people who walked away from the crash that killed eight marines and two airmen.
Susan has carried their names with every step she’s taken since. She’s run with the names on her shirt in the Marine Corps Marathon; she keeps a framed picture of everyone who died in the helicopter in her home; and she calls out the names each month when she gathers with the Lakeville chapter of wear blue: run to remember, a group dedicated to supporting the military, veterans and their families. “I have always felt a great responsibility to them and their families to keep their memory alive and at the forefront of my life and my family’s life, but I did not always know how,” Susan says.
On the fourth Saturday of the month, Susan gathers with veterans, military families and supporters to create a living memorial at Casperson Park in Lakeville. Each meeting starts with a Circle of Remembrance, and participants are invited to call out the names of military members who died in service.
After the names are called, the group runs or walks about 3 miles. Some run longer distances and others walk shorter distances, but it’s not the miles that matter, it’s the act of recognition. The meet-ups are inclusive events with everyone from parents pushing strollers to marathoners. Susan and her husband, Steve Craig, often bring their children. “It has always been a priority for us to ensure our children also know and remember those we lost and their sacrifice,” Susan says.
Susan, who teaches math at Apple Valley High School, moved to Lakeville in 2013 after Steve, who also served as a helicopter pilot in the Marines, retired from service. She learned about wear blue: run to remember when she was running in the Marine Corps Marathon in 2015 and connected with the group about starting a Saturday running community in Lakeville.
Wear blue was founded in 2010 in DuPont, Washington, as a grassroots effort to honor the memory of fallen heroes through active remembrance. The nonprofit does this through several different programs, but its cornerstone program is the Community Run, a no-cost run or walk hosted by wear blue volunteers in cities and towns throughout the country. Each event starts with a Circle of Remembrance where names of the fallen are spoken by participants.
The Lakeville group got its start in spring 2016, and more than 100 people showed up for its first Memorial Day run. “I was shocked to have a bunch of people show up and join us,” Susan says. “Wear blue is the way that I continue to honor and remember those that I have lost, and that I bear a responsibility for. I feel like it’s important that the memory of them stays alive in my life.”
While Memorial Day typically attracts a larger group of runners, Susan organizes wear blue runs on the fourth Saturday of each month with a few dozen participants. “It’s just kind of nice to connect and spend some time taking purposeful steps in their honor,” she says.
wear blue: run to remember
Facebook: wear blue: run to remember – Lakeville, MN
Instagram: @wearblue
Memorial Day Run
All ages. Registration required. 9 a.m. May 26. Casperson Park, 19720 Juno Trail, Lakeville; wearblueruntoremember.org
