For Florida's first Run for the Fallen, dozens of runners gathered at the state capitol to make the 170-mile journey to Jacksonville to honor fallen services members in and around Florida.
During a special morning ceremony, runners were sent off with a police escort.
During their marathon, each runner will stop every mile to remember a service member who was killed in the War on Terror.
George Lutz, founder of Run for the Fallen, who lost his son in Iraq, brought the tradition to Florida to honor 1,067 soldiers the Department of Defense says have died either during combat, accident, or PTSD, with every name, said out loud in their honor.
"We will complete one of the most comprehensive calling out of names of our heroes the state has ever seen," said Lutz.
Every runner has the same goal to make sure these heroes are never forgotten.
"That's what this means, it's a purpose," said Chirs Sutter, who is running in memory of his uncle. "Mother Teresa always said that 'out of pain, roses can grow.' And I think what this organization does, so much more so than anything else, is it helps bind people together."
If you would like to learn more about Run for the Fallen or would like to donate, click here.
