Mass Fallen Heroes Hosts Achilles Freedom Team for Marathon Weekend
April 10, 2018 – Dorchester, MA…. For the sixth year, Massachusetts Fallen Heroes (MFH) will host the Achilles Freedom Team for the Boston Marathon weekend. The team of 40 adaptive Veteran athletes will participate in the 2018 Boston Marathon as runners and handcyclists.
Both MFH and Achilles share the mission of empowering Veterans and providing opportunities that are physically and mentally healing. As host for the weekend, Mass Fallen Heroes provides the team a one-of-a-kind experience with accommodations at the Westin Boston Waterfront, a Wreath Laying Ceremony at the Massachusetts Fallen Heroes Memorial, followed by a “Welcome Dinner” with community partner, Scorpion Bar Boston. On Sunday, the team will enjoy the annual breakfast, a visit to Fenway Park, and a team pasta dinner.
“Achilles has been honored to partner with MFH during the Boston Marathon weekend for several years. Our mission to empower veterans is what brought us together, and the reverence we have for the men and women we exist to serve is a shared, critical through-line with everything we do. That is what keeps this partnership thriving. It is a beautiful thing to find like-minded, like-hearted allies within the not-for-profit community. We look forward to joining forces again to continue giving back to the folks who deserve everything – our nation’s veterans,” commented Janet Patton, Director of Achilles Freedom Team.
Achilles Freedom Team athletes, which includes New England Veterans, their families, and trainers, will arrive in Boston Saturday, April 14th. The Freedom Team members include 34 handcyclists and 6 runners.
“Through community support, Mass Fallen Heroes is able to provide these programs to Veterans and work with organizations like Achilles International,” commented Dan Magoon, Executive Director for Mass Fallen Heroes. “The excitement generated from the weekend’s activities and the personal accomplishment that these Veterans experience during this annual visit to the City of Boston is unmatched,” continued Magoon.
About Mass Fallen Heroes
In 2010, Massachusetts Fallen Heroes was established with the goal of honoring those who sacrificed their lives while serving in Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2016, a permanent memorial honoring those men and women was placed in Boston’s Seaport neighborhood. Since the completion of the memorial, MFH has expanded its mission to provide services and programs that empower returning veterans and support families of the fallen. MFH remains committed to supporting and uniting local veterans and their families and raising awareness of their service and sacrifice. Veterans’ events, Gold Star family activities, Patriot Week and its business incubator for veterans, InnoVets, are just a few of the ways MFH continues to Honor, Support, and Empower its veteran and Gold Star community.
To learn more about MFH or to make a donation, please visit www.massfallenheroes.org.
About Achilles International
This non-profit organization has chapters and members in over 65 locations within the United States and abroad. Every day, in parks, gyms, and tracks all over the world, Achilles provides athletes with disabilities with a community of support. Able-bodied volunteers and disabled runners come together to train in an environment of support and community. Within this community, runners gain measurable physical strength and build confidence through their sense of accomplishment, which often transfers to other parts of their life.
