(Photo provided) Douglas McLarnan, a native of Mount Vernon, unveiled Paddle for Heroes’ newly installed ADA-accessible kayak launch at Ariel-Foundation Park in Mount Vernon in June 2019. McLarnan passed away in March 2024 and this year’s Mount Vernon to Marietta Paddle For Heroes event will be dedicated to his memory.

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio — The ninth annual Mount Vernon to Marietta Paddle For Heroes event is set to kick off May 18 at Memorial Park in Mount Vernon and end in Marietta on May 23.

“The idea for the trip came in 2016,” said Paddle For Heroes Founder and President Stephen Fleming. “I had a lifelong dream of paddling from my hometown in Mount Vernon to the Ohio River. We wanted to raise money to help veterans with disabilities get on the water.”

Each year, Paddle For Heroes joins with veterans, first responders, active military and supporters to help raise awareness for the non-profit and its mission.

“Many suffer from PTSD, as well as other issues directly related to their time in service,” Paddle for Heroes Board Secretary Gina Mosher writes in her blog. “They gather to raise awareness, hopeful for a glimpse of healing, as there is something beautiful and peaceful about paddling.”

Their website says Paddle for Heroes is a non-profit organization that is focused on helping veterans, first responders and their families heal through paddling. Each year the group also does several river clean-ups in the Muskingum Watershed.

(Photo provided) People paddle down the Muskingum River during the Paddle For Heroes event last May. Participants paddle approximately 30 miles each day for up to 12 hours daily as they make their way down the 160-mile stretch from Mount Vernon to Marietta.

The Mount Vernon to Marietta event is a challenging 160-mile paddle designed for reflection and outreach. Participants will paddle approximately 30 miles each day for up to 12 hours daily. The journey includes five nights of camping, with stops at a restaurant in Zanesville and various campgrounds along the route. Fleming said the trip brings together veterans and first responders who have never met.

“And by Day 6 they are lifelong friends,” Fleming said.

Mosher writes in her blog that, like painting creates beauty on a canvas, paddling brings forth the beauty in the heart.

“Often smothered by our experiences,” Mosher writes. “Adding in the element of camping brings forth a different peace and beauty.”

This year’s event will be dedicated to the memory of Douglas McLarnan, a native of Mount Vernon, who passed away in March 2024.

(Photo provided) Participants of the ninth annual Mount Vernon to Marietta Paddle For Heroes event will pass through this lock wall in Zanesville as they make their way down the 160-mile river stretch. The event will start at 6 a.m. May 18 and is expected to finish May 23 at 3 p.m.

McLarnan served his community throughout the years with the Knox County Parks District, where he served on the Waterways Safety Board and the ACA Advisory Board. He was also a founding board member of the Kokosing Gap Trail.

McLarnan also helped Paddle for Heroes raise nearly $35,000 for an ADA-accessible kayak launch installed at Ariel-Foundation Park in 2019.

Fleming said McLarnan was a longtime volunteer for Paddle For Heroes and has been with the organization since day one. He said McLarnan had extensive knowledge of the river and was always there to greet participants as they arrived at their first camp site.

“He was always ready with a warm meal and a fire to warm us up,” Fleming said. “He was always the last one to go to bed and the first one to wake up. He’d get up at four in the morning to make everyone breakfast.”

Mosher writes she joined Paddle For Heroes the day of the ribbon cutting for the ADA-accessible kayak launch and has learned so much about herself and others since then.

(Photo provided) Douglas McLarnan, a native of Mount Vernon, is shown doing some hand fishing in Florida. McLarnan was a longtime volunteer for Paddle For Heroes who passed away in March 2024. This year’s Mount Vernon to Marietta Paddle For Heroes event will be dedicated to his memory.

“I am eternally grateful to Paddle for Heroes, their mission, their tenacity, and their care,” Mosher writes. “Thank you for your heart, your welcome and your love. I am beyond honored to be considered part of this family. I eagerly await our next adventure and meeting our new extended family members.”

The deadline to sign up for this year’s event has already passed but Fleming said those looking to support the event can meet the group along the way.

“Stop by any of the locks and we will have time to stop and chat with you,” Fleming said.