Grateful Nation Montana hosts 5k to help children of fallen servicemembers

Forty-three Montana service members have lost their lives fighting in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Between them, they leave behind 41 children.

While life will never be the same for these daughters and sons, one Montana nonprofit is stepping up to make their futures a little brighter.

Grateful Nation Montana funds in-state, post-high school education for Montana children who lost a parent in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom. To help raise awareness for their cause, Grateful Nation is hosting their 9th annual Freedom 5k Run/Walk, at Bigfork’s Brookside Yard on Thursday, July 4.

Board member Brittany Bell said the run has become a holiday tradition for many families and has grown substantially over the years, from 150 attendees their first year to 559 in 2018.

Bell’s husband, David Bell, is one of the founding members of the organization. Although the couple is based in Missoula, they were drawn to the sense of community they found in Bigfork and decided the small, lakefront town would be the perfect place to host the event.

“We felt that there was a lot of July 4 spirit in the community,” Brittany said. “David and I used to run together a lot and we thought — let’s have a purpose. Let’s do something to help somebody.”

The run begins at Brookside Yard and continues along the scenic Swan River Nature Trail that borders the Swan River. Every dollar raised during the event goes into the nonprofit’s higher education fund, he noted.

“Grateful Nation Montana has a zero percent expense ratio — we fund all of our general admin expenses through the board separately,” David Bell explained. “When people give ... it’s 100 percent mission-oriented.”

Grateful Nation Montana was established by David Bell and friend, John McCarrick, in 2008. Neither man had served in the armed forces, but both wanted to offer support and give surviving families one less thing to worry about: their children’s education. Funding educational opportunities resonated with them because they realized their children’s future would be their primary concern if they were the ones leaving their families behind.

“It’s really easy to look and say, ‘Somebody should solve this problem,’” David Bell said. “Well, maybe I should be part of that process.”

Since their inception, Grateful Nation has raised more than $600,000 to fund higher education for children of the fallen. The majority of these children are too young to begin their journeys beyond high school, but the organization is currently supporting a brother and sister who are attending the University of Montana and University of Miami-Ohio, respectively.

Grateful Nation Montana covers in-state tuition and has partnered with Children of Fallen Patriots, which covers the difference for out-of-state opportunities. Also joining the effort is Las Vegas-based nonprofit, the Folded Flag Foundation. The latter organization offers scholarships and grant assistance to children and spouses of fallen military members.

“These events are so critical,” said Folded Flag president John Coogan, of the run. “As you think about a scholarship organization there’s not a lot of glitz and glamor to that — writing checks for people. These types of events raise awareness and [bring exposure] to gold star families. It’s important for people to come in and be curious about what a gold star family is … and embrace them.”

David said that through his work with Grateful Nation, he has come to know the families behind the headlines — that they’re not just names anymore, but people.

“I would encourage all of us … to be intentional [on the 4th of July] and to take some time and think about the folks, not with guilt but with pride and appreciation,” David Bell said. “We’ve got some of the most amazing people in the world that raise their hands and go put on that uniform.”

Reporter Mackenzie Reiss can be reached at (406) 758-4433 or mreiss@dailyinterlake.com.