Veterans 5K Run to be Held at Dugas Park

By Damon Stone,
Staff Writer

Dugas Community Park will host the Allen County-Scottsville Veterans 5K run on May 31, from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

Sponsored by J.M. Smuckers, the run is to help raise awareness for veterans’ mental health, having been spearheaded in a collaborative effort between Dugas Community Park, the Auxiliary 5712 VFW, and the Veterans Affairs of Nashville, sparking from an idea from Del Hoskins, the junior vice commander of the VFW.

“This really came about in a partnership that we were doing with J.M. Smuckers for Memorial Day,” Hoskins explained. “They were doing a Memorial Day program, and we were working on them with that, and out of that, after it was over, we branched into this.”

Hoskins explained that he wanted it to be a larger scale, several day event to raise awareness, with several events surrounding the 5K.

“You can walk, you can use a stroller, if you need to use a wheelchair, that’s a place that you can do that, or you can run in it,” Hoskins explained. “All of our proceeds are going to go toward suicide prevention.”

Hoskins explained that on the national level, 22 veterans take their own lives each day, and that raising awareness to help those in need

“I know of three incidents in the last two years where veterans have thought about committing suicide, and we’ve been influential in getting them the help they need so that that never happened,” Hoskins stated. “That’s a good thing.”

Hoskins explained that the statistic could be skewed, as it only accounts for veterans who are not homeless or those living “off the grid.”

“Nobody really knows what’s going on with them,” Hoskins added.

In the last six months, Hoskins explained that he has worked with the VA to conduct town halls in counties like Barren County, and in cities like Bowling Green, where veterans can get questions answered from them for a live response.

“We were really excited and grateful to be the host, and to be a part of the planning process.” D Porter, the Director of Development & Community Engagement at the park, said.

As of the time of writing, there have been 50 registrations, and walk-ups are welcome to participate in the event, but registration before the event is encouraged.

“This is a new 5K course and we designed it specifically this year,” Porter added. ‘(…) It does use trail space we (currently) have, and people who have ran 5Ks at the park, there are some similarities, but we decided that it made more sense for us to reposition both our starting line as well as now that we have (…) our grasslands trail now that it is completed.”

Porter explained that a map has been sent out to those that have registered, which utilizes the park’s entire trail system, starting from the amphitheater, running from there through the loop, the nature trail, the extended trail, over to the grasslands, looping there, back to the core trail, and back to the amphitheater.

“It’s essentially a 5K,” Porter explained. “It’s the entirety of our current trail construction, with a couple of detours not taken. Unfortunately, we’re not going to have people run and pass the cave entrance, or because they’re going down further off the extended nature trail, we needed that mileage.”

Porter expressed that he hopes that the route at the Veteran’s 5K will be the route for any potential future 5K run.

“For me, I really see this as a way to allow people to show up in support,” Porter expressed. “The goal is that veterans who maybe are struggling can see this community participate and know that they are not alone. That there are people here that are interested in helping support and uplift their voices, and ensure that they have those connections.”

Porter said that beyond the 5K, he stated that he is excited for the VA S.A.V.E. training session on the previous Friday, May 30, at the VFW at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. doing public training, specifically to ensure that everyday community members can see the signs and know how to support veterans in crisis.

Additionally, Hoskins explained that Smuckers would do a training session on Thursday, May 29 that morning, and record it for later use, with approval being granted from the VA in Washington, D.C. due to the type of venue, being an open-air venue.

“That’s absolutely amazing,” Porter said. “It’s about identifying the key steps in suicide prevention, which are Signs, Ask, Validate, Encourage, and Expedite. Being able to identify the signs, ask the right questions, validate feelings, and encourage them to seek resources or to get the help that they need, or encourage them essentially to continue to live, and that expedite is for people who are in critical crisis, and getting them immediately connected with the resources that we do have in place on a national level, but also within our local communities to ensure that they have trained professionals to help them navigate those moments.”

After the training session, at 6 p.m., the VFW will host a spaghetti pasta dinner, with support from the Daughters of the American Revolution with the desert, with all proceeds from the dinner going back to supporting the park.

At the event, Ernie Stafford and the staff from the Core will be at the park to time the runs for those who are more competitive with 5K events and running.

“I think our real hope is that, one, that we get to make people aware that there are resources out there, and that they can reach out and utilize,” Hoskins expressed. “There’s no such thing as a correct approach, but there is an approach to dealing with it, instead of just acting like we didn’t see it. What I think we’re really trying to do is bring awareness to the fact that suicide is a real issue.”

With May being Mental Health Awareness Month, and with the events surrounding Memorial Day, Hoskins hopes that it is able to put an emphasis on remembering fallen veterans, whether that be in or out of combat.

Porter stated that while stigma exists surrounding mental health, he believes that everyday people struggle with mental health, and that it is special to have these resources available for those who need it.

Those interested in registering for the run can do so online at https://runsignup.com/Race/KY/Scottsville/ACSVeterans5K.