Two former Navy SEALs who didn’t want people to lose sight of the true meaning of the holiday co-founded Carry The Load, a nonprofit group dedicated to the mindful awareness of those who died in service to the U.S. military.
ST. LOUIS — For many people, Memorial Day marks the unofficial start of summer and a three-day weekend of barbecues, beach trips and other outdoor activities. But for those who’ve lost loved ones to war, it can mean visits to the cemetery and the re-emergence of grief and pain.
Before he joined the intelligence agency, Scotty Wirtz served eight years as a Navy SEAL, which is how he met Stephen Holley, who started Carry The Load in 2011 with friend and SEAL veteran Clint Bruce.Holley described what motivated him to start the group: “It was some pain, some anger and some frustration of having lost those friends.”
That leg of the relay paused at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in Missouri, where Scotty is buried. As nearly 100 marchers arrived at the site, rain began to pour, and thunder cracked overhead. But it didn’t stop Dave Wirtz and his ex-wife, Sandy Wirtz, from paying their respects at their son’s tombstone.Dave Wirtz, in green, Sandy Wirtz , in an American flag vest, and Stephen Holley, in a blackshirt, pay respects at Scotty Wirtz’s grave.
“It was quarter to 11 on a Wednesday night,” he said. “I was watching TV, and somebody rang the doorbell.”