The 12th annual Virginia Run for the Fallen will be held beginning today, Thursday, May 2, beginning at Fort Story in Virginia Beach and ending on Sunday at Arlington National Cemetery.

A team of more than 16 active-duty military members and civilians from throughout Virginia and other locations across the U.S. will embark on a 250 plus-mile journey to honor every Virginia service member who died as a result of serving during the War on Terror and in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Enduring Freedom and New Dawn, Inherent Resolve, a release stated.

Each marker of the route will be dedicated to an individual Virginia hero and his or her family. The run team will stop at each “Hero Marker” HM (at approximately one-mile intervals) to give individual tribute to waiting Gold Star family members, friends and comrades. The goal of the event is to create a 250-mile memorial trail through Virginia. Each hero marker tribute will include a short ceremony for the hero along with planting American and Honor and Remember Flags.

This afternoon, the runners will make their way up Route 17, beginning at the Coleman Bridge around 2:30 p.m. The group will continue up Route 17, stopping for dinner at the American Legion post in Gloucester. On Friday morning at 6:30 a.m., the runners will pick up where they left off on their way to Northern Virginia.
On Sunday afternoon, as the run enters Arlington there will be one last opportunity for the public to show its support and walk alongside the team for the last mile from Fort Myer’s Old Post Chapel at Joint Base Myer-Henderson Hall to Cemetery Section 60, where many Virginia heroes have been laid to rest.

For more information and to find out how to participate by joining the run or to donate or volunteer, visit the VA Run for the Fallen website at www.va.usa.runforthefallen.org or www.HonorandRemember.org.