Swampscott woman organizes 9/11 Heroes Run

SWAMPSCOTT – Elizabeth Kausek said the day of her cousin Travis’ funeral in 2007 was the saddest day of her life.First Lt. Travis Manion, United States Marines Corps, was killed in Iraq while rescuing an injured fellow Marine. Elizabeth’s brother Jeffrey had just returned from Iraq after following Manion through the U.S. Naval Academy and into the Marines.”I don’t think I ever understood a thing about the danger until then,” Elizabeth said. “It definitely hit home and freaked me out.”Elizabeth is honoring her cousin’s memory by bringing the 9-11 Heroes Run to her hometown of Swampscott.The 9-11 Heroes Run is an event organized by the Travis Manion Foundation to benefit local firefighters and police officers as well as help wounded veterans through the local Veterans of Foreign Wars.The race will be held simultaneously this Sept. 11 in more than 35 locations in the United States, Iraq and Afghanistan. This is the first year the event will be held in Massachusetts and Kausek said she expects more than 100 people to participate in the 5K run on that Sunday.The course starts at the Veterans of Foreign War Post 1240 and proceeds down Rock Avenue and Burrill Street to Humphrey Street, turns down Pleasant Street to Forest Avenue, winds past the middle school and around to Banks Road, Walker Road and Swampscott Avenue to Paradise Road. The run will conclude with a cookout and live entertainment at the VFW Post 1240.Elizabeth said organizing the 9-11 run honors and continues her cousin’s legacy.She said she became close with the Manion family while she was attending college at the University of Delaware. The Manions lived in nearby Pennsylvania and with both Travis and her brother at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., and then in Iraq, she spent a lot of time with the family.After Travis’ death the extended family rallied to organize and support the foundation in his memory and the 9-11 Heroes Run is its major event of the year.Elizabeth recalled Travis meeting with a group of first responders at Ground Zero before his final deployment.”He told his father, ‘This is why I’m doing this. If I don’t come back, don’t let people ever forget that this is why I’m doing this,'” she said.While her brother was able to “finish Travis’ job,” as he said, by volunteering for a position similar to that held by Manion when he was killed, Elizabeth said she is intent on finishing her cousin’s work in another way, noting Travis had plans to run the Marine Corps Marathon when he returned from his last deployment. Elizabeth ran the 10K course in his place, as a member of Team Travis. She began running the full marathon a few years ago and was recognized as one of its top fundraisers.Meanwhile, the Travis Manion Foundation began holding 9-11 races in 2007 and Elizabeth was soon recruited to organize the 9-11 race in Massachusetts.”Every time she runs it she says ‘I’m not going to do it again,'” her father, Jim Kausek, joked. “Then three months later she signs up ?” and now she organizes it, he added.Jeff Kausel said his sister’s efforts make him proud – not only of her and Travis but also the Town of Swampscott, which he said routinely demonstrates its commitment to those in uniform, veterans and to the memory of those who made the ultimate sacrifice. He cited specific examples including the recent Veterans Parade and the scholarship for his friend and fellow Marine, Capt. Jennifer Harris, who was killed when her helicopter was shot down north of Baghdad in 2007.I know that Elizabeth would always quietly worry about all of us,” Jeffrey Kausek said.”She just does this on her own and it makes me really proud and respectful of the efforts on the homefront.”For more information on the event, please visit http://www.911heroesrun.com/2011HeroesRuns/Massachusetts/BostonMA.aspx