Trappe Firefighter Walks for Heroes Past and Present

Trappe resident Jerry Zepp attributes his decision to become a volunteer firefighter to the same reasons that drew him to the U.S. Marine Corps: “strong love of community, strong love of country, and a desire to do what it is that I can do to help support that.”

It is with this sense of purpose, of facing a challenge and working for a cause greater than himself, that he is participating in the Bataan Memorial Death March for the second year in a row.

Zepp’s first time at last year’s event was meant to have some fun with three of his friends—all of them former Marines. This time, Zepp will be making a solo trip to New Mexico’s White Sands Missile Range—where the event takes place—and using the opportunity to raise money for the .

The march—which is “sponsored by New Mexico State University ROTC and the Army and White Sands Missile Base itself,” Zepp said—is held in honor of World War II American and Filipino soldiers that were surrendered to the Japanese forces in 1942, according to the website.

Thousands died on the forced march through the Philippine jungle, the site continues, and the survivors then endured a prisoner of war camp.

Today’s participants can choose between the full 26.2-mile route, or the honorary 15-mile march, according to the site; the honorary route marchers do not receive awards. There are four divisions in the march, according to Zepp, two military and two civilian. Each of those divisions is broken down into heavy and light.

“Light is no extra weight; the heavy division participants carry a 35-pound (or more) backpack,” Zepp said. “Being the former Marine that I am, I decided that this needed to be done with a backpack.”

Last year, Zepp and his friends completed the march in nine hours and 44-54 minutes, he guessed. This year, his goal is to complete the course in less than six hours and “I’m hoping for 20-22 miles for an outright run,” he said.

Zepp has been training for about two-and-half years, overall, but has been training for the run since last year’s march. The preparation for this feat is intense.

“I work out with the high-voltage gym up in Limerick. Sensei Morgan Arthur has been my girls’ karate sensei for the last five years. He’s a physical trainer, martial artist. I started sports training with him back in September. That’s very specialized, focused, tailored training in developing appropriate strength in the areas I need to complete the run—shoulders, back, leg muscles.

“Prior to that, it was a lot of gym workouts—three, four days in the gym doing weightlifting, and then runs on the weekends. I start my cycle every year at a 10-mile run and then up that one mile per week, (almost) every week.”

At the time of this interview, Zepp was planning to go for an 18-mile run with the pack. He had already completed a 16-mile run.

Given the grueling effort the march demands, is there ever a moment when Zepp thinks, “I can’t believe I decided to do this”?

“Absolutely,” he emphatically replied. “I hit that moment in training regularly. It’s a huge time commitment; it’s a lot of hard work. It’s not an easy thing to do to go out on the with a backpack and run 16 miles. It’s hard on the body; it’s hard mentally. You second-guess yourself a lot ... and you say, ‘Why am I doing this?’ And you remember that you’re doing because it’s something worth doing. It’s a personal challenge, and it’s an opportunity to do what you can do for the betterment of your community in honor of those heroes of World War II. It helps (you stay) level and say, ‘Yeah, I am here for a reason, and I am glad I did this.’”

One of the more emotional, and rewarding, aspects is seeing the remaining death march survivors, some of whom travel to White Sands Missile Range.

“You get to meet these real-life heroes that have survived more than most people can even imagine a human being through, and lived to tell the tale, and are out there thanking you for competing in their honor. And that blew me away,” Zepp said. “They’re there at the beginning, waving and cheering. There was one guy, they took him up on the mountain on a ATV, and he was there at the halfway mark, standing there, waving at everybody and cheering people on, and it was just amazing. They’re there at the end, too; a lot of feelings well up.”

One of the strongest feelings for Zepp is his commitment to his community and the fire company that serves it. He and his wife moved to the area from Georgia in 2000, not planning to stay long.

“Our long-term goal was to move back down South. We wanted to raise our daughters down South," he said. "The longer we stayed here, the more we came to like it. About six years ago, you take a look around and go, ‘You know, this is really a cool little town. I really like the people that I’m meeting, and I’m not meeting enough of them.’ About three or four years ago, it became, ‘This is my community. This is where I live, this is how I identify myself.’ We really enjoy it here.

“After we made that realization, you take a look around and go ‘You know, there are people here that are worth protecting. There are people here that occasionally need help.’”

Seeing a sign asking for volunteers “planted the seed,” Zepp said.

He sent an e-mail to the company, and before he knew it, he was at the station and filling out an application.

Concerned about the time commitment, Zepp was told, "Just run with us for a while, and see what you think.’”

“It sucked me right in,” he said.

Those interested in making a donation can visit www.TrappeFire.org and click “Donate to Fire,” or mail a check to the Trappe Fire Company, 20 W. Fifth Ave., Trappe, PA 19426.

See more of Zepp’s journey at bataandesertwalk.blogspot.com.