photo by: Gage Vota

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — Early on Memorial Day, St. Clairsville’s Main Street was overflowing with motorcyclists riding in memory of fallen military members.

For the past four years, the city has welcomed the Run for the Wall Sandbox route riders to observe Memorial Day at the Belmont County Heritage Museum, adjacent to the courthouse.

In addition to the estimated 325 motorcycle riders, the street was also filled with Belmont County residents showing their support for not only the Run for the Wall but also for military veterans.

“We’re excited to see so many Belmont County residents come out to help support this event and really pay homage to the patriotism that we have here in the county,” Belmont County Tourism Director Jackee Pugh said.

She added that on Sunday evening, Belmont County Tourism welcomed the riders into the city by hosting a dinner at the former Macy’s location at the Ohio Valley Mall.

“We’re having this wonderful Memorial Day celebration, and these events couldn’t be done without the partnerships of our community. And the American Legion Post 159 in St Clairsville has been a huge support for planning this and helping us get all the logistics worked out,” Pugh said.

“I am so thankful that we’re able to gather together as a community and really be able to remember and honor those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom.”

The specific route of the Run for the Wall is called the Sandbox Route, and its mission is to go “Wall to Wall,” meaning that it starts at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in Washington, D.C., and ends at the Middle East Conflicts Wall in Marseilles, Illinois.

Run for the Wall Outreach Coordinator Michael Harris said he is riding in honor of Desert Storm and Desert Shield veterans who paid the ultimate price for his freedom.

“We’re very appreciative of everybody being out here. It’s amazing to come to a town like this and actually feel what it is to be welcomed into a community that really cares,” Harris said.

Following the arrival of the riders at the Heritage Museum, a short ceremony was held with former Miss Ohio Madison (Miller) Sarver being the keynote speaker. Hailing from Coshocton, she recently married her husband, Xavier Sarver, and they now live in Mount Vernon, Ohio.

As a funeral director’s daughter, she understands how veterans continue to serve the community after their time in the military comes to a close, and she knows that “freedom isn’t free.” As Miss Ohio, she structured her platform and nonprofit organization to find ways to empower people – especially veterans – and to lift them up.

She began her remarks Monday by thanking the riders for doing what they do and said that they are the embodiment of what she preached while serving as Miss Ohio. She said she understands that a veteran’s service never truly ends, so she believes that neither should the respect and gratitude shown to them.

“How lucky are we on Memorial Day to feel this empowerment, not just today, but the energy carrying forward. I take this opportunity to celebrate, to honor, to remember, to say the names of those who we lost in service, those who are missing in action, those who are prisoners of war, and those that we recognize whose service has never stopped,” Miller said.

She then acknowledged that many of the riders are also veterans and said that the Run for the Wall ride is a reminder to continue to support veterans and thank them for their service.

“As they run wall to wall, they step outside of their homes, the same way that they did when they were called into the service and stepped away from their families, knowing that they may not come home. They serve as a constant reminder in these communities that it’s our responsibility to carry their legacy forward every single day,” she said. “​​We think of your brothers and sisters in arms, whose names are on those walls, whose names are at the new Korea Memorial, whose names we will not forget, whose names we will continue to say.”

Following her speech, the St. Clairsville High School Band performed “Taps” followed by Chaplain Larry Perkins of American Legion Post 159 providing a closing prayer.