Bataan Death March re-creation brings focus to those who gave all
LAS CRUCES – A mission to remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day has led four U.S. military veterans to the Philippines and the deadly jungle trails of the infamous 1942 Bataan Death March.
There, the four members of Mission Memorial Day are retracing the steps of the estimated 80,000 U.S. and Filipino military and civilians who were surrendered to Japanese soldiers and forced on a 66-mile, five-day trek to Camp O’Donnell, which only an estimated 54,000 survived.
In 2015, the four set themselves the task of taking on an extreme physical challenge, honoring the sacrifices made by U.S. armed forces and focusing on a different conflict each year.
Their goal is twofold. First, they want to honor the sacrifice of all those who have fallen in service to our country, making the ultimate sacrifice to ensure the American way of life. Second, they hope that by spreading the word of their arduous treks, they remind the public about the true spirit of the holiday.
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“We wanted to do a tribute on Memorial Day because we realized that people were making it about swimsuits and barbecues and not about remembering service members that have died to give us the freedom to go to shopping malls and pick out bathing suits and have a barbecue,” said Brian McPherson, a 30-year-old Ohio Marine who served two tours in Iraq.
McPherson, who was injured during an ambush, said the four members of the group met in 2014 and decided combining their passion for hiking and their ability to endure suffering would pay tribute to the fallen heroes.
This year, that tribute focuses on WWII. Last week, McPherson and his fellow team members gathered in preparation to set out on the 66 mile trek, during which they will survive on only half rations and little water, and sleep on the ground. The trek is timed to end on Memorial Day. Last Wednesday evening, the day before the march was set to begin, they gathered for a meal and waited for their fourth team member, 28-year-old William Forsyth, an Air Force pararescue jumper from California, to join them.
Fellow marcher Margaux Mange, a 31-year-old Colorado resident who served two tours in Iraq as a Military Police sergeant and was hit by an IED, said the crew was adding names to the flags they will carry to the top. This year, they are also honoring prisoners of war and said people can visit the group’s website, missionmemorialday.com, to add to the list of those honored or support the project.
The group’s first attempt at summiting Denali in 2105 fell short of the 20,310 foot peak. At 18,000 feet, they planted U.S. flags. They returned in 2016, making it all the way to the top where they carried flags bearing 500 names. Those flags were then flown over Arlington Memorial Cemetery the day after Memorial Day.
The original group expanded, including veterans and volunteers who, in 2016, climbed California’s 14,505-foot Mt. Whitney and 3,848-foot Mt. Diablo as well as 14,439-foot Mt Elbert in Colorado and Texas’ 8,750-foot Guadalupe Peak.
After those vertical challenges, the group settled on the Bataan Death March to highlight its impact and the suffering of those forced to march and, in many cases, die on the trail. It is also timely in that many from that generation are dying and the history of WWII is being lost.
“We could go to the beaches of Normandy or something like that, but thought we should highlight something lesser known,” said Josh Jespersen, a 30-year-old Navy SEAL who served in Iraq and Afghanistan. “It was one of the biggest atrocities that ever happened to American troops. I did not know how bad the conditions were these guys went through.”
Jespersen said the mission took on personal meaning to him because his grandfather served in WWII. Coming from a big family, his grandfather was the “patriarch everybody looked up to.”
When the decision to move his grandfather into a care facility was made, he said it saddened him to see this formerly robust figure sitting in a wheelchair, not participating in conversations. Watching his grandfather’s mind go led Jespersen to realize the same thing was happening to an entire generation.
“We’re trying to bring back Memorial Day, take it back from spring fashion shows and mattress sales,” Jespersen said. “We want people to go out and pay tribute to everyone who has lost their lives in any conflict America has been through. It’s about the guys that are no longer here and can make memories. I want people in America to go out in the mountains, take a hike, go to Arlington and put a red poppy on the gravestone rather than pick out a white outfit for the summer.”
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