The second annual Christopher Monica Scholarship 5K and Fun Run brought a small crowd to Renaissance Park at Central State Hospital early Saturday morning.
The event held a different significance for the many people involved but they were all united in its purpose – to remember the man behind the race’s namesake and support his family while also helping local students pursue their dreams.
“Today is a day of grief, but also of celebration,” Tyler Flowers said in his opening prayer at the race start line.
Flowers is a representative of the United Methodist Church of Milledgeville, where Chris Monica was a member and his family still attends.
“I’m not a runner, but I came to support them. The people of the church are here for them,” said Flowers, who wore a race bib number for the Fun Run.
Sgt. Monica was one of two Georgia Department of Corrections officers brutally slain by two prison inmates in June 2017. The capital murder trial process of each inmate dragged on for a total of five years, obviously dragging out his family’s grief process as well.
“I could barely even get out of bed and walk every day for the first few years,” his wife, Denise, said. “But I can feel the love here. It fills my heart. It’s just lovely,” she added with a sincere smile on her face.
“It’s just amazing today,” said Zoey Monica, Sgt. Monica’s daughter. “I always feel dad here. It gives us so much support.”
Members of the Georgia Concerns of Police Survivors were there to support the Monicas and to spread the mission of the national organization. All residents of Jones County, Brenda Parker said her husband was shot to death in the line of duty with the St. Augustine Police Department; and Gordon and Vicki Lindsey’s son, a K9 officer for Bibb County Sheriff’s Office, was killed during a high speed chase when the suspect rammed his patrol vehicle.
Gordon Lindsey said GCPS helped his family so much that he now volunteers to give back and help others. Noting that the charitable organization is donation funded, he said 100 percent of the money goes back to the surviving families.
“But we show emotional support, too,” Lindsey said, explaining that GCPS hosts a Christmas party every year for all surviving families and various camps around the state throughout the year.
“You can let your hair down because everybody is in the same boat,” he said. “The older ones who’ve been there for a long time, they help the new people. You feel secure in the knowledge that everybody knows where you’re at. We make friends and stay in contact with them.”
Denise, Zoey and the Monicas’ other daughter, Ashley, started the annual 5K and Fun Run not only to honor their beloved husband and father, but to provide college scholarships for students at Georgia College Early College and Baldwin County High School.
“Education was so important to Chris because he wanted everyone to do better than he did,” Denise Monica explained. “He went to tech school and earned his GED, so these scholarships are for college and for technical colleges because we want to encourage students to get their education, just like he wanted. The world needs (blue collar) workers, so we encourage students to go to tech school, too.”
One of last year’s scholarship beneficiaries, Braylen Howell, came from Athens to run in the Fun Run. Howell said he was studying finance at the University of Georgia.
“This is the earliest I’ve gotten up on a Saturday morning in a long time,” he said with a chuckle. “I’m not a runner, but I’m here to support them, especially since they supported me. It’s a fullcircle moment.”
Howell’s mother, Latrina, also participated in the race, saying she was proud to be a part of the memorial run that is helping her son, a graduate of GC Early College. Many others from GCEC also participated in the event as either volunteers or runners.
Dr. Runee B. Sallad and her family ran in the 5K. Sallad, who said she runs regularly on a treadmill, earned the race’s Top Female Finisher award in the GrandMasters category.
“Sgt. Monica was one of our parents and he was visible and actively involved in his daughters’ education and in the school,” Sallad said. “So, it was tragic losing him, not just to his family but to so many others, so we’re here to keep his memory alive. Our staff and students are here volunteering to do everything needed to keep his legacy going.”
The 5K overall winner was Julian Council, 16, of Milledgeville, with a time of 18:30.6. Council beat his time in last year’s race by one minute and 20+ seconds, when he came in third. Council, also a student at GCEC, said he hopes to go to college on a track scholarship.
Jamariyuh Chandler, a member of the GCEC cross-country track team, came in first in the one-mile Fun Run.
For more race results, visit online at www.classicracesservices.