LOS LUNAS — The eighth annual Believe in Heroes Memorial Run will take place on Saturday, June 1, beginning at Mitchell Theater’s Starlight Cinema parking lot in Los Lunas.
The course will take runners around the Huning Ranch and Jubilee neighborhoods, There will be a 10k course, a 5k course and a kid’s 1k course, The 10k run begins at 7:30 a.m., and the 5k course begins at 8:30 a.m. The kid’s 1k will begin at 9:30 a.m.
This is the first year the event will not take place during Memorial Day weekend.
Chris Sais, one of the coordinators of the event, said one of the reasons the date was moved was to avoid conflict with other Memorial Day events. They hope this date change will allow for more participants.
In the past, the event has attracted anywhere from 100 to 300 participants and about 65 volunteers.
Jim Schnitzler, one of the creators of L.I.V.E. is heading up the planning efforts for the event and has been doing so from Wisconsin. Schnitzler has been the driving force behind the memorial run for the past eight years and doesn’t plan to let the distance stop him.
News-Bulletin file photo
The event is put on by Los Lunas Invested in Veteran Events, also known as L.I.V.E. Inc. According to its website, all contributions will go to assisting veteran organizations within Valencia County. They have previously raised more than $90,000 for local chapters of the Wounded Warrior Project, Blue Star Mothers and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
Jim Schnitzler, one of the creators of L.I.V.E. is heading up the planning efforts for the event and has been doing so from Wisconsin. Schnitzler has been the driving force behind the memorial run for the past eight years and doesn’t plan to let the distance stop him.
“I’ll stay with it. I’m still heading it up because I really believe in the project,” Schnitzler said.
Sais said the organization created the community’s first Veteran’s Day celebration a few years back.
“It’s all about taking care of our veterans. They have provided so much for us in the selfless act of defending our freedoms,” Sais said. “We just want to do what we can to give back.”
Registration packets are available for pickup between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., Friday, May 31, at the Los Lunas Transportation Center, 101 Courthouse Road in Los Lunas. Registration packets are also available from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 a.m. on Saturday at the event.
Jim Schnitzler can be contacted at [email protected]. Packets and more information are available online at LosLunasVets.com.
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April 19, 2024
