Run to honor fallen service members this Memorial Day

Join me in running to honor fallen service member this Memorial Day.

Wear Blue: Run to Remember is a nonprofit running community that honors the service and sacrifice of the American military and inspires healthy living.

This Memorial Day, their mission is to create a “living memorial” through Americans all over the country running to honor the 65,502 service members killed since the beginning of the Vietnam War. The organization is matching every registered participant with the name of a fallen service member.

Participation is free. Register here to commit to run or walk in honor of a fallen service member this Memorial Day anywhere!

Related: MEMORIAL DAY: A MARINE’S PERSPECTIVE ON GRATITUDE AND SACRIFICE

You can also run in person at one of the 22 locations across the country (many of them around military bases) that are hosting runs this year. Go here to see if there is an in-person run happening near you. In Washington DC, there will be a Chinook helicopter landing, followed by a Circle of Remembrance and a 5k run. Participants are invited to bring a picture or message to leave on the Memorial Day wall and are invited to wear blue as they run a route lined with posters of fallen services members.

Those unable to join a run are encouraged to join a virtual Circle of Remembrance on the wear blue website, during which names of military members killed in war will be spoken.

PenFed Credit Union, which is partnering with Wear Blue: Run to Remember, will be sharing excerpts of inspirational interviews with Gold Star Children on PenFed’s social media channels. Click here to watch Gold Star Daughter Heidi Hallett share a heartfelt message about her dad and her reasons for running this Memorial Day.

Related: MEMORIAL DAY 2021: WAYS TO HONOR THE FALLEN THIS WEEKEND

The mission of Wear blue: run to remember is to create globally recognized running communities that honor and preserve the legacy of fallen service members. With each step, runners are ensuring that the stories and sacrifices of those our country lost aren’t forgotten.

Wear Blue: Run to Remember was founded following the deployment of 5-2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, a unit that, while deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, sustained a significant amount of combat losses and casualties. During that deployment, a small group of wives and battalion support staff met weekly to run. When the brigade returned, two of those Army wives, Lisa Hallett and Erin O’Connor, turned their experience into a nationwide vision that now helps thousands heal from and work through the more challenging aspects of military life during a time of war. Lisa’s husband, CPT John Hallett, was one of four soldiers killed in that unit on August 25, 2009, while returning from a goodwill mission in Southern Afghanistan.

At all official Wear Blue events, American flags are lined along the racecourse to honor the fallen; each flag is hand-held, making it a true living memorial. In front of every flag is a large poster with a photograph of a fallen service member.

Wear Blue: Run to Remember officially participates in major national races including the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon series, the Army Ten-Miler, and the Marine Corps Marathon. Being a member of wear blue requires no fundraising commitment or membership dues.