FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 8, 2012

WASHINGTON – Want to go from couch potato to runner while doing something that helps the families of our fallen military? It’s never been easier to get exercise and honor a fallen military hero, thanks to the Hey, Stinky Feet!® Challenge.  

Now through October 25, 2012, anyone can purchase Hey, Stinky Feet!® Complete Guide to Running Your First Marathon  training program, know that proceeds will go to help the families of our fallen military through TAPS (Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors),  and run (or walk) 26.2 miles at their own pace to honor a fallen military hero.

Running or walking to honor and remember a fallen military hero is an easy thing that the public, surviving families and military family supporters can do to carry on the legacy of our fallen troops. After sending flowers or writing a condolence card at the time of the funeral, people often wonder what they can do to honor and remember someone who has died while serving in the military.

When a member of the public steps forward to run or walk in memory of a fallen service member, it means a great deal to the families left behind, said Marie Campbell, director of the TAPS Run & Remember Team and a military widow. “It reminds the family that their loved one is not forgotten. It also inspires the runner too, who gets to learn about the person being honored through the run.”

The author says the book is based on passionate inspiration. “In one of my conversations with President Barack Obama, he encouraged me to chase my dreams and pursue what I am passionate about –that has always been helping others, and the Hey, Stinky Feet!® Complete Guide to Running Your First Marathon  book, training program, and fundraising activities are one way I get to do this. I encourage everyone to get involved,” said author Alexander Loudon.

It’s easy to get started. Go to http://www.taps.org/HeyStinkyFeet/ to learn more and sign up. Hey, Stinky Feet!® Complete Guide to Running Your First Marathon costs $5 for the e-book and $10 for the paperback. All profits from training program sales are donated to TAPS.  The book is easy to use and designed to help people at any fitness level – even people who want to transition from being a couch potato - to being a runner.

When they sign up, runners can indicate the name of the fallen hero they want to run in memory of, or they can ask TAPS to match them with a fallen military hero’s family.
Participants can run or walk, and they can complete the program at their own pace, where they live.  Runners can be out in the community, at a formal race, or in a gym on a treadmill. And they don’t have to complete all 26.2 miles at one time. Runners can cover the 26.2 miles in any time frame they choose and select a pace that works for them.  

After completing 26.2 miles, runners should send an email to Campbell at marie@taps.org. TAPS will include a photo of the service member honored through the runner’s efforts in the slide show held on October 27, 2012 when the TAPS Run & Remember Team gathers for a pasta dinner and celebration the night before the Marine Corps Marathon.

More than 500 people, including hundreds of surviving family members of our fallen military, will run the Marine Corps Marathon Healthy Kids Fun Run, 10K and marathon races October 27-28, 2012 as part of the TAPS Run & Remember Team. 

MEDIA CONTACT: Ami Neiberger-Miller, 202.588.8277, ami@taps.org 

ABOUT THE TAPS RUN AND REMEMBER TEAM: The TAPS “Run and Remember” team began with two runners, who ran the Marine Corps Marathon in 2000. One of them was Marie Campbell, who lost her husband, US Air Force Sergeant Dee “Soup” Campbell, in 1996 when a terrorist bomb took the lives of 19 air men at the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia. Thousands of people, including surviving families, and supporters, run races throughout the United States year-round to raise awareness about our fallen troops and support to help the families left behind. Get more information about the team at www.taps.org under Get Involved.

ABOUT TAPS: Founded by a military widow in 1994, TAPS is the leading national organization providing compassionate care to the families of America’s fallen military heroes. TAPS welcomes anyone grieving the death of someone who served in the military, regardless of where they died, or how they died. TAPS provides peer-based emotional support, grief and trauma resources, seminars for adults, good grief camps for children, case work assistance, connections to community-based care and a 24/7 resource and information helpline for all who have been affected by a death in the Armed Forces. For more information go to www.taps.org or call 800.959.TAPS (8277).

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