U.S. Soldier in Afghanistan Runs Oklahoma Marathon for Maine Children

Col. John McKenney was stationed to an Afghan post in the mountains made immortal by the story of the Light Brigade. A peaceful person by nature Col. McKenney was assigned to train local military leaders on managing a military organization. On his trip to his new location he had no difficulties, though the vehicles following his were shelled as they proceeded.

In his first few nights he learned the meaning of rockets red glare. Many poorly aimed rockets hissed by the ancient fortress where the training base is located. Nearby this base is a place called the boneyard. A relic of the ten years Russia tried to quell the Afghan spirit. A boneyard of mangled tanks, trucks and support vehicles that attempted to pass through a low valley on the way to this same fortress.

In his first weeks their, he spent a lot of his spare time reading. An active person, this could not continue. Col. McKenney began with little jaunts inside the wire of the post. In the process he discovered that if you did it right, you could run for several miles and still be in a relatively safe place. (except for an occasional rocket)

Soon others joined him on the run. Usually a couple of Germans and some stray dogs. Realizing there was an upcoming Marathon back in his home town of Portland, Maine; he contacted the sponsors and asked if he could enter times from Afghanistan, if they ran the same distance and day. Sure enough they were tickled pink to include the runners from his base in the time listing and credit them with the race.

Col. McKenney and a number of others ran that day for the full marathon. It was a beautiful day for running in the city of Portland, Maine; with cool sea breezes blowing. The runners enjoyed the green waterfront of Casco Bay.

Meanwhile in the Mountains of Afghanistan the other runners were met with blistering heat as the sun rose over the hot mountainous desert landscape. Though their times were not the most stellar that day, they celebrated a victory of the human spirit that night.

Not long after this Col. McKenney and other runners communicated with the Oklahoma City Marathon and received similar approval. Their times are listed in the website under Memorial Marathon – Afghanistan. This marathon has a little different history behind it that got Col. McKenney thinking about what he could do to remember the tragedy that occurred their. An E-mail from one of his nieces in Maine answered the question.

Nikki told her uncle of her work with the children of Camp Sunshine. These were very ill or disabled children who needed there family with them to have even the least opportunity to go to camp. She told him about all the special children and what the experience meant to them.

Col. McKenney had his mission. With only a few Americans and Allied troops on his base, he needed another route to find sponsors for the Marathon. So he got on the Internet and contacted his friends, his six brothers, his sister, his in-laws and his brothers in-laws. He asked for a very small per mile donation. His German allies also contacted their families and friends and asked for donations.

When the day of the race came, it was a hot day, even for Afghanistan. Even though he and the other runners could see snow in the high mountains, the ground shimmered with day’s heat. They started out in the agreed synchronization with the Oklahoma City time.(I believe they had agreed on local time). They went out hoping to post good times, as they knew their timekeepers would be very precise. At first it was hot but not unbearable. This is only second hand, but I believe every runner thought about giving up that day. In all within the boundaries of Afghanistan 32 individual runners and nineteen teams (each with two to five members) participated in the Memorial Marathon. John placed twelfth among the individual runners. Not bad for a fellow of 47 years.

Some runners were running for themselves, some for Oklahoma City and some like John were raising money for other charities. Runners from the Army, Army Reserve, Marines, Germany and Mongolia all participated.

Though it was difficult each and every runner found that extra push needed to make it through to the end. After the race was finished the goal was not yet met. The runners like John had to contact their sponsors and collected the rewards for their hard work.

While the runners times will not go down in the record books, the fact that John’s run in the Oklahoma City Marathon raised enough to sponsor one family for a week at Camp Sunshine in Maine while being run in the mountains of Afghanistan will.

Colonel McKenney was Lt Colonel at the time of the race.