As our Gold Star Race Program launches and wear blue’s first ever fundraising week closes, I want to thank those of you who have contributed. Your selfless and generous donations are greatly appreciated and will help wear blue’s Gold Star members heal, survive and thrive. Through your support, Gold Star family members – parents, spouses, sons, daughters and siblings of the fallen – will run historic marathons and other long distance races to honor their fallen heroes and to celebrate the lives yet before them. Thank you for helping make that happen.
There is still time to contribute. Your generosity will offer family members who lost their loved ones to war the opportunity to embrace their lives and the new adventures wear blue has waiting for them. The ache these families are left with by the death of our nation’s heroes will always remain. Our Gold Star program helps them heal through running in landmark races – such as the 2015 Marine Corps Marathon – with their fellow wear blue runners. They are embraced and honored in the wear blue community as we provide them with training, travel and lodging, race fees, special Gold Star attire, shoes and other gear. The Gold Star Program ensures that their race experience pays appropriate homage to their loved ones but also honors them as Gold Star families. We seek to make their race experience uplifting, life affirming, and fun.
Running a long distance race transforms you; many in the wear blue community have experienced this. The person who starts the race is not the same one who crosses the finish line. Running as a wear blue community aids this transformation. We become part of something larger: a community that bears our pain, celebrates our triumphs, supports our efforts and cheers us on to new and brighter adventures.
Steve Prefontaine, the legendary long-distance runner, said, “To give anything but your best is to sacrifice the gift.” Please help us give our nation’s Gold Star families the best opportunity we can give. Our Gold Star families certainly gave – and continue to give – theirs.
Our fundraising week will soon close. Please consider contributing to our Gold Star Race Program. You can access the wear blue Gold Star Race Program page here: https://secure.donationpay.org/wearblueruntoremember.
Keep running.
Respectfully,
Chris Bryant
Gold Star Race Program Director