One of the largest marathon races in the country is returning to Arlington this weekend with planned road closures and festivities.
On Sunday, the 49th Marine Corps Marathon — dubbed “The People’s Marathon” — will kick off at 7:55 a.m. at Route 110, between the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery.
By TARA COPP Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Marine Corps in a ceremony at the commandant’s headquarters on Monday presented their highest noncombat medal to the parents of Cpl. Spencer Collart, who died last year after his V-22 Osprey crashed in Australia.
The following was written by Kevin M. Hymel of Arlington National Cemetery. It was linked in yesterday’s Morning Notes but is republished this morning with permission. Cpl. Collart grew up in Arlington and graduated from Washington-Liberty High School.
Alexia Collart’s eyes filled with tears as she accepted the flag that had been draped over her son Marine Cpl. Spencer R. Collart’s casket. Her daughter Gweneth, sitting beside her, openly wept. Bart Collart, Cpl. Collart’s father, held back tears. The family’s grief spread to the crowd of more than 100 family and friends, who either dabbed their eyes or let the tears roll down their cheeks.
Last night, hundreds gathered outside the family home of Cpl. Spencer Collart, who died tragically during a training exercise in Australia, to honor his life.
Despite the somber atmosphere at the Maywood home of Collart’s parents, Alexia and Bart, neighbors, friends and family offered prayers, shared fond memories and joined together to sing Spencer’s favorite song, “Africa” by Toto.
A 21-year-old man from Arlington was among three Marines killed in Australia over the weekend.
Cpl. Spencer Collart died after the MV-22B Osprey aircraft he was on crashed and caught fire on Melville Island, off the coast of Australia’s Northern Territory. It happened during a military training exercise involving forces from the United States, Australia, the Philippines, East Timor and Indonesia, news outlets reported.
Arlington Has a New County Attorney — “Arlington County Board Selects MinhChau Corr as New County Attorney After conducting a nationwide search, the Arlington County Board has selected MinhChau Corr as the new County Attorney for Arlington County Government. As chief legal counsel to the Board, Ms. Corr will report directly to the County Board and lead an office of 14 attorneys and 3 paraprofessional staff.” [Arlington County]
New DCA Checkpoints Now Open — “New checkpoints opened Tuesday morning at Reagan National Airport, offering a speedier security process and what airport officials say is an upgraded experience befitting an airport that serves as a gateway to the nation’s capital. The checkpoints are one element of a $1 billion plan that marks the airport’s most significant upgrades since the opening of two new terminals in 1997.” [Washington Post]
‘Innovation Studio’ Planned at HQ2 — “Amazon Web Services will open a new AWS Innovation Studio to collaborate on global solutions that leverage its cloud computing technologies to address issues such as housing insecurity, social justice, climate change, sustainability and health and education inequality. A first for AWS, the studio will launch at Amazon’s new HQ2 headquarters under construction in Arlington, Va.” [CRN]
First Responders Honor Fallen Marine — “ACPD and @ArlingtonVaFD paid our respects to USMC Sgt. Nicole Gee, who was tragically killed in action in Kabul, as her procession traveled through Arlington this evening. May we never forget her service and sacrifice.” [Twitter, Twitter]
Arlington police officers, sheriff’s deputies and firefighters paid tribute yesterday to Staff Sergeant Darin Taylor Hoover, a Marine from Utah who was among those killed in the Kabul airport bombing last month.
A group of Marines in their dress blue uniforms braved floodwaters along Columbia Pike to help a stranded motorist.
Video of the rescue has gone viral on TikTok, racking up more than 800,000 views as of this article’s publication. It appears to have taken place on Columbia Pike near the Pentagon on Thursday, amid a torrential downpour that flooded a number of roadways around Arlington.
‘Walking Marine’ Walks Through Arlington — “Terry ‘The Walking Marine’ Sharpe has been walking through Arlington today and giving out toy soldiers to raise awareness of veteran suicide.” [Twitter]
Goldman Sachs Investing in Local Startup — “Arlington startup MotoRefi, whose platform aims to make refinancing car loans easier for consumers, is closing in on an eight-figure round involving a blue-chip investor. The company is poised to raise about $45 million in new funding, the lion’s share of which comes from Goldman Sachs, according to sources familiar with the deal.” [Washington Business Journal]
Nilah Williamson, the Yorktown High School senior who was recently featured on Good Morning America for pursuing a pilot’s license before a driver’s license, will be attending the U.S. Naval Academy next fall.
Williamson said she wants to major in chemistry, a field that she is passionate about. After four years in labs, however, she plans to go to flight school, returning to the cockpit and trading in her goggles for a pilot’s uniform.
Patrick Moran, a 1990 Yorktown High School graduate, is reaching astronomical heights in his career.
Moran is one of two new pilots appointed by Virgin Galactic into its Pilot Corps on Oct. 27. He joined Jameel Janjua as one of eight pilots in the space flight program.
