‘We really came together as Americans’: Never Forget Run to begin early Saturday morning in Powhatan

POWHATAN COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) -- The Never Forget Run, taking place at Powhatan High School, will start early Saturday morning on Sept. 13 to honor the first responders who died on Sept. 11, 2001, and the camaraderie afterward. The attack took the lives of nearly 3,000 people.  

The run, founded by Russell Holland, is 343 laps around the high school’s track to honor every first responder who died on the tragic day. 

“Not just on the 9/11 events, but what it was like to be an American just after 9/11,” Holland said.

Holland told 8News he started the event to teach young people who weren't alive when it happened about the country's resilience following the attacks.  

“We started in 2019 which would’ve been the very first year that kids in high school were graduating that were either born on the year that 9/11 happened or hadn’t been born yet," he said. 

Holland was living in Atlanta, Georgia, on the day of the attacks, but had family members in Washington D.C. His sisters worked in the district, and his mother worked inside the Pentagon. By chance, she was not there on the day of the attacks.

Holland got emotional talking about his two sons, 20 and 21 years old, and his 25-year-old daughter, about highlighting the camaraderie he felt at the time.

“We really came together as Americans," he said. "It just makes me sad that they’ve not gotten to experience America as a country versus just this polarized political argument.” 

His three kids were all in high school for the first run.

The run starts at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday morning, and it takes around 19 hours to complete the nearly 85 mile run.  

A first responders’ name and company will be announced for each lap. 

“The 343 people that died in the towers are really just a symbol of what we would hope we would be like if we had to respond to something like that," Holland said. 

He used to run the entire distance, but they’ve learned over the years it’s best to split it up between a few people. Four runners will share the 343 laps.

There will even be a piece of one of the towers carried around the track, weighing in at 1,500 pounds so it takes teamwork to carry it around.  

Whether you’re in full fire-fighter gear or just want to walk a lap, all are welcome to remember those who lost their lives 24 years ago. Holland also said it's a great chance to meet the first responders in the community outside of an emergency situation.

“We encourage everybody to come out," Holland said. "You don’t have to run any particular distance, you don’t have to run any speed, you can walk.” 

The run will go into Saturday evening and is open to anyone who wants to come out and run a lap or two.