How did you spend Memorial Day? Was it at a family barbecue, checking out sales at the mall, or spending a leisurely day in a pool?
Ask veteran Navy SEAL and Dallas native Stephen Holley, and he’ll tell you he spent it loaded down with a backpack, walking for hours, and cheering others on to do the same while fundraising in the name of fallen heroes at an event known as Carry The Load.
Holley and Clint Bruce, another veteran Navy SEAL, founded Carry The Load in 2011 with a straightforward mission: restore the true meaning of Memorial Day.
Back then, Carry The Load was a one-day march at White Rock Lake that lasted 20 hours and 11 minutes, included a couple hundred participants, and supported various veteran groups in the area. Now, it's a national movement that reaches throughout the United States.
The annual Dallas Memorial March now happens on Reverchon Park and part of the Katy Trail. Veterans, first responders, and everyday Americans march, pitch in, and lend support along the way. And longtime executive director Debbie Wright says moving to the Katy Trail was critical.
“Instead of circling the lake,” she says of the previous route, “the activity of walking down and back on the Katy Trail, passing people and sharing stories along the way is what it’s all about.”
In 2022, Carry The Load raised $2.25 million in peer-to-peer fundraising while covering 20,000 miles and 96 rallies in 48 states. Since 2011, Carry The Load has raised more than $38 million.
The money raised peer-to-peer during May goes directly to a number of groups who support military veterans, as well as fire, rescue, and police personnel, and their families, in times of need.
But none of this happens without caring volunteers. “Since the beginning, there's been a growing number of local people who have been involved for more than 10 years, many of whom live in the Park Cities,” Stephen says, gratefully.
Some of the groups receiving funds in 2023 include Adaptative Training Foundation, Assist the Officer and Heroes on the Water.
Stephen has hundreds of stories that illustrate the lifeblood of the effort. One year, unexpectedly walking through Memphis, a mom showed up with her son whose dad had died in military, he recalls.
“We kept walking with them and came upon a construction site,” Stephen says. “Clearly puzzled by what he saw, a random construction worker leaned out and asked, ‘What the heck are you guys doing?’ When they shared their emotional story, the big burly construction worker started to weep. That's the magic of the relay: complete strangers who have no relationship with each other, making an important emotional connection. That’s what we’re all about.”
After all the years, and miles, what continues to motivate Stephen? “The impact Carry The Load has made on countless Gold Star families,” he answers. “It also offers those who didn’t serve a way to show their support.”
The movement continues to gain in popularity, and participation, while providing shrewd new innovations and enhancements along the way. Carry The Flag, an educational program designed to inspire patriotism among youth, was added in 2017. Then two years ago, the "Lessons From The Front" podcast began. So far, they’ve produced 70 episodes.
“It’s like being on the relay where we hear meaningful stories valuable to the listener and healing for the guest sharing their story,” says Todd Boeding, the show’s host and a veteran Marine and Carry The Load board member.
Debbie says Carry The Load plans to go deeper in markets already established in North Texas and across America. And where does Stephen see Carry The Load in 10 or 20 years from now?
“Our fondest hope,” he replies, “is that all of America is honoring Memorial Day.”