Kristoff Cohran of Moultrie, Georgia, left, and Karen Padgett of Dallas bear the flags for Carry the Load as they walk the final distance to the Minot Rural Fire Department Tuesday afternoon.

The true meaning of Memorial Day was remembered in Minot Tuesday with the help of an organization of traveling volunteers.

Carry the Load, based in Dallas, brought one of its buses to Minot for the third year, sending walkers on a five-mile, detoured hike from Roosevelt Park Zoo to Minot Rural Fire Department to raise awareness and show support for the heroes who sacrificed for their nation and communities.

The walk was part of a larger event taking place around the country that will culminate in Dallas on Memorial Day weekend.

“They’re all volunteers,” Carry the Load staff member Madison Woodson said of the traveling team. “They take time out of their schedules and out of their lives to come out here and be with us. They range anywhere from 18-,19-year-old college kids to 40-,50-,60-year old veterans/first responders.”

They also invite local residents to join them in part or all of the local walks.

Carry The Load, a nonprofit that provides active ways to connect Americans to the sacrifices of military, veterans, first responders, and their families, is heading into its 12th Annual Dallas Memorial March on at Reverchon Park in Dallas. Walks are occurring around the country this month as volunteers work their way to Dallas.

North Dakota is part of the 3,800-mile Mountain States route that begins in Minot and ends in Dallas. There also are routes on the West Coast, East Coast and New England as well as a Midwest route from Minneapolis.

Beau York, a Dallas fireman and road manager for the Mountain States route this year, has participated in most routes and did the Mountain States route last year.

“It’s a beautiful route. The whole way we get great scenery, so we love it. We love Minot. They are so inviting,” York said.

The Minot Rural Fire Department has been a regular host for Carry the Load’s Mountain Route, which makes another stop in Mandan as it passes through 30 cities. York explained volunteers might come and go throughout completion of the route so it isn’t the same team from start to finish, although there are volunteers who do make the entire trip. Volunteers wear the names of individuals they want to honor.

“Every year we get more walkers. Everyone knows someone that they can carry, whether it’s police, fire, veteran or families,” York said. “It started with one Winnebago and two Navy SEALS walking, to five buses in 48 states and 20,000 miles in 32 days.”

Carry The Load’s mission on the route and at the Dallas event is to remember the fallen and educate communities on how to respectfully observe Memorial Day.

Carry the Load also started a campaign in January to raise $2.25 million to aid with challenges faced by military and first responders and families of those who have fallen in the line of duty or by suicide. The organization partners with other nonprofits that specialize in mental health healing, physical rehabilitation and taking care of families.

More information is available at carrytheload.org and on Carry the Load’s social media pages.