Bringing focus to prisoners of war and personnel missing in action was the goal of the 35.8 mile run from the Iowa Capitol in Des Moines to the Memorial Union.

The ISU Air Force ROTC had its annual run on the third Friday of September to honor veterans who are still classified as a POW or MIA. The run fittingly finishes in Gold Star Hall, where the names of fallen soldiers who attended Iowa State are memorialized. 

“It started with an official proclamation from the governor saying [the] third Friday of every September will be POW/MIA [Recognition] Day,” said Ryan Peltier, senior in industrial technology. “It has expanded into cadets getting a whole group together and splitting [it] in half and getting the flags all the way.”

Another tradition is carrying the American flag and the POW/MIA flag the whole way from Des Moines to Ames. The ISU Air Force ROTC men and women rotate through their running lines so everyone has a chance to carry the flags.

When they first get down to the capitol on Friday morning, they present the POW/MIA proclamation and the governor signs it.

“We can meet with him, have him sign it and then we all get a picture with him and run up from there,” said Derick Mauser, senior in architecture.

Each county or city along the route provides police escorts from the capitol building to the Memorial Union.

“Some people try doing the whole thing,” said Colton Kennelly, senior in mechanical engineering. “There are two shifts — one runs in the morning and one runs in the afternoon — so we switch out.”

Along with the run, the Air Force ROTC also honors POWs and MIAs by having a cadet stand as an honor guard at a table in the Gold Star Hall. The honor guard stands present in its full-service uniforms, including its rifle, throughout the day.

“There’s some stuff on [the table] like a rose, a vase, a thing of salt, a little lemon wedge, silverware, napkin, plate and all of them mean different things,” Peltier said.

Scott Mlcoch, sophomore in civil engineering, planned the honor guard part of the day.

“I mimicked a type of change of guard from the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, watched presentations from them and started taking bits and pieces out of it in order to make our presentation more crisp and cleaner,” Mlcoch said.

Mlcoch said the day means a lot to him because he has family members in the military that have experienced those situations.

“The names on the walls in there, I do it for them and we all do it for them,” Mlcoch said. “These are former Iowa State students that no longer are able to come home. It means a lot being able to do this to represent the students of our school that weren’t able to come home.”

Cadets stand at attention the entire time they are guarding the table and rotate in shifts throughout the day.

For Kristen Skadeland, junior in mathematics, the run gives her a bigger meaning to the military’s sacrifices.

“Running it just kind of helps me think about those who have sacrificed their lives and made the ultimate sacrifice before me,” Skadeland said. 

Isaac Kinrade, senior in interdisciplinary studies, said remembering the POWs and MIAs was the most important thing.

“The people that we do this for, they’re not free,” Kinrade said. “It’s just a huge relief for us to be able to do this, knowing they are not able to.”