Team Red, White & Blue and wear blue: run to remember have announced "One Flag Forward," a 250-mile relay that will carry a single American flag from New York City to Washington, D.C. over five days this September, honoring the 1.3 million Americans who have died in service to the nation.
A Flag Carried By Hand, Mile After Mile
Starting September 12, 2026, runners will hand off one flag roughly 50 miles a day until it reaches the nation's capital on September 16. Unlike a baton relay with hundreds of separate legs, the format is intentionally intimate: the same flag stays in motion the entire way, passed from one set of hands to the next, according to the official announcement from Team RWB.
Service members, veterans, and Gold Star and surviving family members will join the run along the route, which is sponsored by USAA. The relay is timed to follow the 25th anniversary of September 11, a detail organizers say is central to the tribute.
Who's Leading the Run
Three names are attached to the effort: Lisa Hallett, a Gold Star spouse and co-founder and CEO of wear blue: run to remember; CSM (Ret.) Lee Yoneyama, the organization's chief operating officer; and Col. (Ret.) Michael "Sully" Sullivan, executive director of Team RWB. Both organizations have spent years building community around endurance events for veterans, service members, and military families, and this relay is a continuation of that work rather than a one-off stunt.
wear blue: run to remember is best known for its weekly run gatherings where every mile is dedicated to a fallen service member by name. Folding that practice into a multi-day relay to Washington gives the tribute a physical, cumulative shape: 250 miles covered by feet, not just miles logged on a calendar.
Why It Matters Beyond the Route
Relays like this one do more than mark an anniversary. They give veterans, active-duty troops, and military families a concrete, shared goal to train toward and a community to do it alongside, the same structure that underpins so much of the grief-and-fitness work both organizations are known for. For participants, showing up to carry a flag for a mile is a small, physical act tied to something much larger than a single race bib.
Operation WarriorFit exists for exactly this reason: to remove the cost barrier that keeps veterans, service members, and first responders from lining up at events like this one in the first place. Race entries aren't cheap, and for someone rebuilding structure and community after service, that fee can be the difference between showing up and staying home. If you're an eligible veteran, service member, or first responder looking for your next event, check your eligibility to see what OWF can cover.