by SSG Tina Villalobos, Kansas National Guard
As early morning preparations for the Kansas City Marathon got underway in Kansas City, Mo., 34 Soldiers of the Kansas Army National Guard’s 35th Infantry Division gathered for a simultaneous 10K Shadow Run on the evening of Oct. 21, 2017 at Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. The run allowed the Soldiers a sense of participation in the Kansas City Marathon and helped them feel at home while deployed half a world away.
As day turned to twilight, each of the participating 35th Infantry Division Soldiers donned a Kansas City Marathon T-shirt and prepared for the run that would lend them a piece of home.
Preparations for the run began in June and coordinating the event was no small feat, said CPT Jennifer Denkler, chief of plans and operations, programs and policies, 35th Infantry Division.
“Our Chief of Staff, COL Timothy W. Bush, asked me to look into different races that were being organized back home that we could possibly partner with,” CPT Denkler said. “So I contacted Mr. Josh Zabel, one of the Kansas City Sports Commission managers, to coordinate a corresponding Kansas City 10K Shadow Run.”
The Sports Commission did its part to connect the events by sending over T-shirts and medallions for participants.
Many Soldiers participated in helping to plan and implement the run, CPT Denkler said. “2LT Hannah Higgins has done most of the final preparations, with help from SSG Mitchel Jensen and SSG Jamie Wolf,” Denkler said. “We also have many other volunteers I greatly appreciate. We really couldn’t have done it without everyone involved.”
Among those volunteers were several Soldiers from C Company. Their commander, CPT Todd Gessling, took great pride in his Soldiers’ involvement.
“They’re doing a great job out here helping with the run,” said CPT Gessling. “Charlie Company likes to be present in everything that’s going on. I think it’s a little piece of home for everyone who wanted to run in the Kansas City Marathon. I know I’d like to run in the actual Kansas City Marathon next year – so this is just a little taste of it. In Charlie Company, we take our running seriously.”
MAJ Peter McCann, battalion operations officer, Headquarters and Headquarters Battalion, 35th Infantry Division, also appreciated the effort to connect Camp Arifjan to the Kansas City event.
“A lot of folks who have previously run the marathon or half marathon wanted to do the Shadow Run because it is kind of like being home, here in Kuwait,” MAJ McCann said. “It’s not the same as running in Kansas City, but we’re at least commemorating the time, so that when we get back we can maybe go do the run again in the streets of KC.”
Threads of camaraderie and connectedness were woven throughout these runners’ stories as they headed to the starting line. Soldiers of all ranks, from private to general officer, participated in the Shadow Run – and many expressed their gratitude for the run and the spirit that tied the two events together.
“I wanted to participate because my son, Blake Denkler, just won his State cross-country meet yesterday,” CPT Denkler said. “He says he ran the race for me, to keep me strong during this deployment. So I wanted to run this race in honor of him and his strength being a military child.”
