The Veterans Music Festival and Brooksville Tunnels to Towers 5K were held in downtown Brooksville on Saturday, November 9, 2024. The day started early, with the 5K kicking off at around 8:30 a.m. Before the run, an honor guard and bagpipers escorted Jerry Wayne Padgett II, a wounded veteran confined to a motorized wheelchair, and firefighters in full gear to the starting line.
This 5K was challenging as the course involved going up and down large hills. To add to that challenge, several of the participants were carrying gear that added significant weight. The firefighters were in full garb, local swat team members carried added weights, and a mother running the race carried her small child.
After the race, the Tunnels to Towers 9/11 Never Forget Mobile Exhibit opened and the music festival got underway. US Representative Gus Bilirakis spoke along with other dignitaries. The Never Forget Mobile Exhibit has relics from the 9/11 attacks on America and shares stories from that day.
Jennifer Stals, the General Manager of Brooksville GMC, who had recently finished running the 5K, explained, “We brought the museum in for the event today.” Her favorite part is that she had the chance “to speak to some people who have actually benefited from Tunnels to Towers. So that was really nice to see the actual impact that they’re able to have with people.”
Another race finisher, Bob Hilgardner, also with Brooksville GMC, said, “You see all the military and fire; first responders. It’s incredible. It’s moving. If you’re not moved by it, there’s something wrong with you.”
Kym and John Rouse Holzwart appreciated “just honoring all the first responders and the veterans.” They went on to say that the “opening ceremony was really cool.”
[Photo by Hanna Maglio]
