Last September, then-Army Staff Sgt. Zachary Reichert served in the midst of a one-year tour of duty in northern Afghanistan.
As a respite from the life-and-death dangers he and his company dealt with 24 hours a day, the Pottsville High graduate organized and participated in a "shadow half-marathon'' on the same weekend as the Sol Lipton Run Fest.
"It's from Pottsville, and it was something to do to motivate some of my guys,'' Reichert said Sunday.
"It was something to take our heads off everything, stay motivated and promote the event, too, being a Pottsville native.''
While he's still in the service, Reichert ended his tour and came home last Veterans Day. Now, Sgt. 1st Class Reichert works full-time at Fort Indiantown Gap.
Sunday, Reichert participated in the 33rd annual Sol Lipton Run Fest in his hometown of Pottsville.
"It was amazing to run on American soil again,'' Reichert said. "It was the first time I ran this event at home so it felt great.''
The 28-year-old Reichert clocked a 22:28 in the 5K, placing 14th overall in a field of 100 and first in the men's 25-29 age group.
Maj. Adam Lipton ran a 21:12, good for fifth overall and first in the 30-34 age group.
While they ran at home, a shadow half-marathon at the Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan was scheduled to be held. An Army team of eight men and women are running to support the Sol Lipton Scholarship Foundation.
Last year, Reichert was among 13 who ran a shadow half-marathon in northern Afghanistan.
"For a lot of the guys, it was their first half-marathon,'' Reichert said. "We all got awarded an Army Achievement Medal from our command for actually doing it. One, you did an event and two you helped sponsor an event. It was a double positive for us.
"It's very rewarding because you always see shadow half-marathons, and I leaned out to Adam and said, 'Hey, let's bring Pottsville to Afghanistan.' And he said, 'That's a great idea.' ''
The Sol Lipton Run Fest has long had a patriotic component. The races are held on or around the anniversary of 9/11.
Prior to Reichert's race last year, a ceremony was held to raise an American flag.
"We all saluted it,'' Reichert said.
That same flag hung at the finish line Sunday in Pottsville, greeting runners as they completed their journey.
Reichert's journey has taken him from Pottsville to Afghanistan and back home again.
"It was our small little unit that ran together,'' Reichert said. "We were in the process of moving base and closing our base down, so it was nice to get our mind off the mission for that day.
"It's great to be home,'' he added. "You reflect back - last year at this time we were in Afghanistan and now we're running at home safe.''