SEPTEMBER 16, 2025 — Thousands from Fort Lee, the Tri-City Area (Petersburg, Hopewell, and Colonial Heights) and beyond gathered Sept. 13 to pay tribute to those who died in service to the nation and to support Gold Star Families with the installation’s annual Run for the Fallen.
The 15th Fort Lee RFTF, which is organized by Survivor Outreach Services, featured about 75 local Gold Star Families, including guest speaker Sarah Geisen, president and founder of the Drew Ross Memorial Foundation.
“Today, as we run for the fallen, we honor not only those killed in action, but every man and woman who wore the uniform and is no longer with us, whether lost in combat, to illness, in training, or to the invisible wounds of war that so many of our service members carry,” Geisen said.
Geisen is the Gold Star sister of Army Capt. Andrew “Drew” Ross, a Green Beret who was killed in action Nov. 27, 2018, with three of his Soldiers when his vehicle struck an improvised explosive device while conducting combat operations in Afghanistan.
Speaking directly to the Gold Star Families in attendance, Geisen urged them to support one another and to continue moving forward.
“You will face setbacks, just like my brother did, but you will also discover strength that you never knew you had, and you will learn, as he did, that true leadership is never about the spotlight,” Geisen said. “It is about the people to your right and to your left, making them better than they were yesterday. Never accept mediocrity from yourself, and don’t let your battle buddy accept it either.”
To show appreciation and honor the sacrifice of Gold Star Families, as well as that of their fallen service members, all in attendance fell silent while survivors said their loved ones’ names.
U.S. Army band members played inspirational music at the event, including “There Goes My Hero” by the Foo Fighters, while Gold Star Families, then, walked the track.
Active-duty service members, who largely filled the stands, applauded and saluted the Gold Star Families as they passed by.
Hundreds of fallen service member photos lined the athletic field of Williams Stadium alongside American flags and combat boots.
“Here at Fort Lee, we’ve made [RFTF] our own—carrying forward this tradition for 15 years as a defense community committed to honoring the fallen,” said Fort Lee Garrison Commander Col. Rich Bendelewski.
Run for the Fallen is part of a national, nonprofit initiative that started in 2008, when a group of civilians decided to run from Fort Irwin, Calif., to Arlington National Cemetery in honor of service members who were killed in the War on Terrorism.
A 5K run and one-mile walk followed the ceremony with a contingent of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association leading the procession of individual walkers/runners, families and training units moving in formation.
The event organizer, SOS, provides advocacy services and support to surviving family members of all military branches. In addition to RFTF, the Family and MWR office here hosts events like the Gold Star Family dinner and the annual Memorial Garden Butterfly Release to show that survivors remain valued members of the U.S. military family.
Story by Chad Menegay
U.S. Army Fort Lee