Press Release

For Immediate Release:

“RUN FOR THE FALLEN” TO INDIVIDUALLY HONOR AND REMEMBER ALL MILITARY SERVICE MEMBERS WHO DIED AS A RESULT OF SERVING DURING THE WAR ON TERROR.

On Tenth Anniversary, Relay Team to Cover One Mile for Each Fallen Service Member in Tribute Run from California to Arlington National Cemetery.

Chesapeake, VA – Beginning in April 2018 Honor and Remember Inc. will initiate America’s Run for the Fallen, one of the most comprehensive military tribute events ever organized.  The Run will call attention to and specifically honor the men and women who have died during the War on Terror, beginning with the USS Cole Oct 12, 2000.  A core team of more than 400 active duty military and civilian members from throughout the nation will embark on an 19 state, 6100 mile journey to honor every fallen service member, numbering nearly 20,000. Each mile of the route will be dedicated to an individual hero and their family, based on their chronological date of death.Carrying a full size American Flag, State Flag, and Honor and Remember Flag along with biographical information, each relay team will stop at one mile intervals where a pre-staked “Hero Marker” is placed.  There they will deliver a short tribute to those heroes for waiting Gold Star family members, friends, comrades and patriots. Covering approximately 50 miles per day, each day will conclude with an ending ceremony at planned stopping points in local towns and communities.

The goal of the event is to create a tribute trail across America recognizing every service member who died while serving or as a result of serving, calling every name out loud along the way. America’s “Run for the Fallen” will kick off on Saturday morning, April 7, 2018, at 7:00 a.m. at Fort Irwin, California, with a “start” ceremony for the four month, 6100+ mile mission through California, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia to finish at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia, on or near Sunday August 5th. More details and route maps will be available here… www.runforthefallen.org

On our final day as the run enters Arlington there will again be opportunities for the public to show their support and walk alongside our team for the last mile from Fort Myer’s Old Post Chapel at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall to Cemetery Section 60, where many of our nation’s heroes have been lain to rest. For more information and to find out how to get involved either by joining the run team, donating or volunteering please visit the Run for the Fallen website at www.runforthefallen.org or write run2018@HonorandRemember.org

Run for the Fallen
– Jon Bellona, inspired after the death of his college roommate and friend 1LT Michael Cleary in Iraq, created a national run of remembrance. Beginning Flag Day, June 14, 2008, a dedicated team of runners ran across America from Fort Irwin, CA to Arlington National Cemetery, one mile for every member of the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard and Marines killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom. Each year since the run across America, runners from around the world have joined Run for the Fallen in remembering our fallen heroes. Over 180,000 miles have been collectively run in remembrance of those fallen in those recent operations. www.runforthefallen.org

Honor and Remember – After the death of his eldest son Tony in Iraq, Gold Star father George Lutz recognized the need to educate the nation on the precious cost of freedom. His mission became raising awareness about the sacrifice made by military men and women who died for their country through the creation and establishment of a distinct and tangible symbol of remembrance. The Honor and Remember Flag was unveiled nationally on Memorial Day 2008 to perpetually recognize the sacrifice of our fallen military heroes and their families. The flag is now being embraced by veteran and service organizations, businesses and patriots and endorsed by legislation in cities and states as their official symbol. Additionally it is being flown by thousands of Americans across our nation, becoming a nationally accepted symbol of remembrance. You can learn more and sign the petition to support this campaign by visiting www.honorandremember.org

MEDIA CONTACT:
Laura Sutton│480-495-4668 laura@runforthefallen.org