Remembering America’s Heroes This Memorial Day!

Restoring the true meaning of Memorial Day!

“Though it’s a wonderful weekend to celebrate family and the freedoms we enjoy as Americans, the true purpose of Memorial Day calls all of us to ‘never forget to remember’ those who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedoms,” says Clint Bruce a Former Navy SEAL who admittedly rarely thought about it until he started to lose friends in combat.

Five years ago Bruce and fellow Navy SEAL veteran Stephen Holley took it upon themselves to start Carry the Load as a way to restore the true meaning of Memorial Day and connect Americans to the sacrifices of military, law enforcement, firefighters and rescue personnel. Across the nation, participants of Carry The Load walk in support of the organization’s mission and help raise funds for military and first responder nonprofit partners.

Carry The Load’s 2016 nonprofit partners include Adaptive Training Foundation, Assist the Officer Foundation, Attitudes & Attire, Austin Street Center, Building Homes for Heroes, The Center for BrainHealth, Equest Hooves for Heroes, Gratitude Initiative, Heroes on the Water, Higher Ground, Lt. Todd Krodle Foundation, The Marine Corps-Law Enforcement Foundation, National Fallen Firefighters Foundation, Recovery Resource Council, Snowball Express, Sons of the Flag and The Travis Manion Foundation.

Starting April 27, the 33-day, 6,600-mile National Relay is comprised of a 2,300-mile East Coast route from West Point, NY to Dallas and a 4,300-mile West Coast route from Seattle to Dallas. It concludes with a 20-hour and 16-minute Memorial March in Dallas over Memorial Day weekend. The relay provides an active way for Americans to remember, honor and celebrate those who have made the ultimate sacrifice while protecting and serving our country. Since 2011, more than 75,000 Americans have participated and helped to raise more than $6 million. Based on the number of National Relay teams, local events and sponsors signed up to date, Carry The Load is expecting to greatly exceed those numbers this year.

Visit CarryTheLoad.org to participate, volunteer or donate. Text “CARRY” to 243725 to help support our nation’s heroes. Join the conversation by following Carry The Load on Facebook, Twitter (@CarryTheLoad) and Instagram (@CarryTheLoad), and share who you are carrying with the hashtag #CarryTheLoad.

Authors Renee Cossman and Danny Bridges