TINKER AIR FORCE BASE, Okla. -- On Oct. 3, 2021, five members of the 448th Supply Chain Management Wing honored the victims of the 1995 Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building bombing by running in the 2021 Oklahoma City Memorial Marathon as a relay team.
Richard Stephens Jr., Regina Houze, Gregory Thompson, Jennifer Schmitt and 1st Lt. Joseph Nacionales completed the run in 4:34:31, earning seventh place of out of 13 government relay teams. The ranking didn’t bother them, though, because their focus was on training and ensuring five runners started and finished.
“I always want to do it [relay run],” said Houze, a late addition to the team who almost didn’t get to participate. On her way home from an already-scheduled vacation the day before the race, Houze faced long delays at the airport. Luckily, she returned just in time to pick up her bib and wrist bracelet. “I was relieved when I got on the plane at Houston, because I knew I’d be home in time,” she said. “I didn’t want to let the team down.”
The team chose running lengths suited to their training and ability. Stephens started them off, running the first 6.2 miles. He was followed by Houze (3.1 miles), Nacionales (7.5 miles), Schmitt (3.1 miles) and Thompson (6.2 miles).
The team’s composition mirrors that of the wing: civilian and military, men and women, young and old, each supporting the wing’s supply chain management mission in different ways. Schmitt and Houze are logistics management specialists managing Supply Chain Risk in the 420th Supply Chain Management Squadron; Nacionales is a mechanical engineer in the 422nd SCMS; Thompson plans for Defense Logistics Agency-managed consumables in the 420th SCMS; and Stephens is a logistics contract specialist in the 418th SCMS.
The wing members wanted to end the marathon running as a team. The four who completed their running leg waited five blocks away from the finish line to meet Thompson, join him, and finish together.
“When I saw my relay teammates awaiting my arrival, I felt a huge sense of gratitude, unity and motivation to finish strongly,” Thompson said.
Will they run together next year? “Maybe,” Stephens said. “Right now, we’re just glad to have run together, honoring the 168 who died in the 1995 Murrah Federal Building bombing.”