I never imagined being in this moment, training for my first full marathon. I wasn’t always a runner.  When I first came to wear blue, I struggled to complete one lap around the track.  On 23 August 2010, my husband, SGT Brandon Maggart died of wounds sustained when insurgents attacked his unit using indirect fire.

Hundreds of runners are about to toe the line at the 2014 Army Ten Miler, to honor the service and sacrifice of the American Military. Each runner has a different reason for choosing blue. Below, Augusta, Georgia wear blue meet-up lead Joe Matosian shares his story:

I had anticipated the day for many months. Over the last few weeks, my excitement grew as a steady stream of UPS & FEDEX trucks arrived with chapter supplies. First, it was our wear blue banners, next some tables. Other shipments followed with coolers, chalk, and plastic bins.

This Sunday is a wear blue race day.  I love wear blue race days… the energy. The purpose. The impact. And I get to meet so many amazing people!  Over 40 runners are tackling the inaugural Rock’n’Roll Raleigh Marathon and Half-Marathon, and over 50 volunteers will be a part of the wear blue Mile, bearing American flags in honor and remembrance of America’s fallen service members.  We are a people who understand and appreciate the incredible service and sacrifice of the American military.

"By the time I reached the Hains Point portion of the 2013 Marine Corps Marathon, I’d already run over 11 miles. I’d run the MCM many times, so I knew what this chunk of the course had to offer, and I was not looking forward to it..."

The wear blue community is comprised of hundreds of amazing men and women, who each feature their own layered story. I am privileged to share Mike Brown’s wear blue tale below.  Mike is a great American.  He graduated from West Point in 1966, and is the only Vietnam Cobra pilot known to survive being shot down.  Author of Missile! Missile! Missile! A Personal Experience, Mike runs as a member of the Joint Base-Lewis McChord wear blue Chapter.

The chapter presidents are the pulse of the organization... they create the local communities that breathe wear blue.  They mark the courses, rally the runners, generate the volunteers, find the donors, forge the local partnerships, and show up every Saturday, rain, snow, hail, or shine, and do what we do...run, honor, remember.