“His whole service could be summed up in one sentence: he was either deploying, or preparing to deploy.”
Richard, a Veteran we talked to
Why it started
Why It Started
MG Cares began with our family. Several years ago, our oldest son joined the Army. Around that same time, he got married and found out he and his wife were expecting. When he left for basic training, he didn't get a pay check right away, so his pregnant wife stayed with us while he was gone. She didn't have family close by, and we watched her go through that season without him.
That experience opened our eyes to something we hadn't really thought about before. We started talking with other Veterans and military spouses we knew, and they shared their own stories, what it was like to deploy, or what it was like being the one left behind when a spouse deployed. One Veteran told us his whole service could be summed up in one sentence: he was either deploying or preparing to deploy. That was it.
We realized there was a whole group of people sacrificing right alongside our service members, the spouses, the kids, the parents, and they just weren't getting the recognition they deserved. So we started the Hero Run. It's a 5K where we bring in mock and sometimes real drill instructors to lead participants through exercises, so our community can get a small taste of what training and service is actually like. We know we can't replicate what our Veterans go through. But we can give people a moment to appreciate it.
We had to take a year off when we didn't have enough volunteers to keep it going. We came back in 2026 with a new location and more support than we've ever had, and now we're looking ahead to 2027. The reason hasn't changed. We just want to say thank you to Veterans and their families in a way that actually means something.
Jason and Liz Massengale, Co-Founders
The Hero Run is more than a race. It's a community's promise that the sacrifices made by our Veterans, and by the families who stood beside them, will never be forgotten.
Our Mission
MG Cares exists to honor Veterans and their families by directly investing in the next generation. After the costs of putting on the Hero Run are covered, 100% of what's left goes toward helping a graduating Nixa High School senior, the child of a Veteran, pursue their future, whether that's a four year college or a Votec program. It's our way of saying thank you, not just to those who served, but to the families who served alongside them. What started with one family has grown into a community effort, supported by the City of Nixa, the American Legion, the Parks Department, Nixa High School's band and JROTC, area churches, and local businesses. This isn't about any one person or family anymore. It belongs to the whole community now, and that's exactly how we want it.