Jul 13 2020
The Journal News
Eleven bicycle riders who spent Saturday, July 11, riding over 160 miles to honor fallen heroes made three stops in Montgomery County.
Cyclists in the General Logan 200 Cycling Challenge began at the Gen. Logan Museum in Murphysboro at the stroke of midnight on Saturday and trekked north to the Oak Ridge Cemetery in Springfield where they hope to help fund a Gold Star Families Memorial monument. Along the way, they made stops at the Veterans Memorial in Hillsboro just after 9:30 a.m., stopped at Wendy’s in Litchfield an hour later, then at the Shell Station on Interstate 55 north of Raymond at around noon.
At every stop, the riders paused to honor service men and women from that area killed in action since Sept. 11, 2001. At the Hillsboro Veterans Memorial, they were welcomed by veterans thanks to Maj. Gen. Willie Cobetto (ret.), and by flags surrounding the memorial placed by the Hillsboro Sertoma Club on patriotic occasions.
The ride not only honored fallen heroes who gave their lives in service to their country, it also supports their families and raised funds for the Gold Star Families Memorial in Springfield.
Named in honor of General John A. Logan, the ride pays homage the Murphysboro native whose General Order No. 11 that called for a national day of remembrance for Civil War dead is the basis for what is now celebrated as a national holiday on Memorial Day.