In memoriam

It is one man's silent vigil, marked only by the sound of his footsteps on the pavement. The only evidence of Mike Ehredt's journey across the Unites States is the tiny American flag placed meticulously at every mile marker along various highways throughout the Unites States.

It is one man's silent vigil, marked only by the sound of his footsteps on the pavement. The only evidence of Mike Ehredt's journey across the Unites States is the tiny American flag placed meticulously at every mile marker along various highways throughout the Unites States.

"One life. One flag. One mile," is the tag line for Ehredt's personal journey to honor and remember the soldiers who have lost their lives serving in Iraq. The journey of Ehredt, who served in the armed forces 30 years ago and calls Idaho his home, came to a brief halt last Tuesday evening when Ehredt stopped to spend the night in Paradise for an evening's rest and free accommodations.

The 4,751-mile journey, lasting 157 days, began in Oregon and will ultimately conclude in Maine where the last flag representing a fallen soldier will finally be placed. Each flag has a yellow ribbon tied around it with the name of a fallen soldier, their age and hometown written on it.

Ehredt officially began his six month journey on May 1, when he set off on his first run at the shore of the Pacific Ocean in Astoria, Oregon and he is set to culminate the trip in October when he finally reaches the Atlantic Ocean in Rockland, Maine.

Ehredt made his way through Sanders County, stopping in Thompson Falls and Paradise, while heading to Ravalli last Wednesday.

The daily journey of remembrance and honor lasts around eight to ten hours as Ehredt runs approximately 30.3 miles per day, stopping at every mile marker to place a flag and salute in honor of the fallen. The flags are placed in order from the most recent soldier to have passed away since Ehredt began his trip back in May and will conclude with the placement of the flag that honors the first soldier to have fallen in Iraq.

Ehredt has left himself a cushion of miles and will therefore be able to include any additional soldiers that may die in Iraq while he is on his journey through America. The final count of fallen soldiers when he embarked on his journey was 4,387.

Although the days are long, Ehredt takes it one mile at a time. He runs solo, without any support vehicle, pushing a stroller full of flags and supplies until he reaches his day's destination where he stays with a different host family every night. Every ten days a shipment of supplies is delivered to a host's home from volunteers in Driggs, Idaho with things such as flags, shoes and nutritional items.

"I always like to say I wasted a lot of eight or ten hour days doing nothing and now for six months I get up in the morning and go to work, do my eight or ten hours and it's the least I can do to honor them and say thank you because I have never forgotten who I am and where I am and what I have because of the sacrifices they have made," said Ehredt.

Back when Ehredt was a Postal Clerk in Colorado, he was purusing an edition of the Denver Post when he came across pictures of service members and their stories.

"I felt this connection to what was going on in Iraq. I never knew anyone that was over there, a lot of them were the same age as my son, but I thought there was a Vietnam wall, there was a World War II memorial, there are memorials to everything in war and conflict and I thought how can I do this for Iraq and have it rather personal?" said Ehredt.

The answer was an easy one: cross county on foot. Having been a runner since he was young, Ehredt has taken part in numerous marathons including completing the Rocky Mountain Slam in 2008 and was the 34th person to do the Big Horn, Hard Rock, Wasatch and Bear 100-mile races in one season. He has also completed two Marathon des Sables, a 160-mile, six-day run across the Sahara Desert in Morocco.

Running seemed to be the natural answer for Ehredt's personal vigil.

Although 4,751 miles is too large a number to grasp, Ehredt remains determined and continues to take that next step, taking it one mile at a time, only comprehending the day's run, not the 157 days as a whole.

"Everyday I have an intention of going to the next mile, just think about that next mile because I can't comprehend 4,000 miles, but what I can rap my head around is tomorrow," said Ehredt. "I don't even think about where I've been or what I've see or how far I've come, I just focus on tomorrow."

Although this is his personal journey, each day Ehredt continues on with his massive undertaking, people can follow his adventures through America on his Web Site at www.projectamericarun.com. Every time Ehredt reaches the next mile marker, he uses his phone to send a message to the Web Site that marks where he is and which soldier's name was just placed down with a flag.

The long marathon is not just hard work for Ehredt, but also a way for him to see America from a different perspective. Seeing the country from an RV, hotel room or with a support vehicle, said Ehredt, takes away from the purity of sights and meeting people such as Darin and Breyanna King, who he stayed with in Paradise.

If people are interested in getting involved they can either donate to the cause in general or sponsor a soldier. All proceeds will go to a nonprofit organization in Jackson Hole, Col. called Honoring Our Veterans, which goes towards assisting wounded and disabled military veterans with the tools needed to have a fulfilling life and a stable career after military life. The Jackson Hole Recreational Therapy project also provides wounded veterans with life skill training such as therapeutic horseback riding, fly-fishing and kayak touring. The services provided to the veterans include airfare, transportation, lodging, meals and all activities.