November 13, 2001

The recent AAmerican United Flag Run through New Mexico was truly a Journey Through the Spirit of America. In all the towns small and large that we carried the flags of both the United States and New Mexico we were met with enthusiastic crowds of people cheering us on as we slowly but steadily moved westward across the Land of Enchantment. It immediately became apparent to us that the spirit of America is alive and well in the hearts and minds of the citizens of this great nation.

Ruth and Dee Friesen

We carried the flags a total of 478 miles over a period of 109.5 hours. Of all the states, we had the greatest mileage to cover, and the highest terrain. We had over 280 runners and volunteers register on the web site, plus many people simply came out to run alongside the flag. Some runners made the trip to New Mexico from as far away as Seattle and New Hampshire and Germany. All the major airlines were represented. Many runners were not associated with the airlines, but simply wanted to show their support for our great country.

Starting at Texico in the east to Quemado in the west, the scenario was the same. We were greeted by citizens standing beside the road waving American flags and cheering. The reception we received in Clovis was the largest group of people to greet the flags across the entire nation. The people of Willard surprised us with Krispy Kreme doughnuts at 2:30 in the morning. In each town we paused for a short ceremony honoring the flag, and the flag would be passed around the crowd so everyone would have an opportunity to hold it. The ceremony at Albuquerque Civic Plaza honored the only New Mexican to die in the aircraft crashes of September 11, Al Marchand, a United flight attendant and retired police officer from Alamogordo. The honorable Representative Heather Wilson presented a very moving address, which is available on the www.flagrun2001.org web site.

Our escorts throughout the entire journey were superb. The respective county sheriffs, local police and fire departments, New Mexico State Police and the Albuquerque Police and Fire Departments enjoyed escorting the flag because it meant that they had something positive to do for a change. As professional aviators, we were impressed by the smooth operation of the escorts of the day. They would make great pilots.

The journey would not have been possible without the dedicated support of the New Mexico Search and Rescue Support Team along with the American Radio Relay League. They provided us vital communications support in the remote regions of the state where cell phones do not work. They set up the GPS link that enabled the exact position of the flag to be displayed on the New Mexico page of the web site. New Mexico was the only state to provide this information. The web site has over 175 photos posted of the New Mexico section of the Journey Through the Spirit of America.

The employees of all the airlines wish to thank all who supported us in this effort of carrying the flag through our great state. It is very satisfying to know that together we all share the vision of a bright future for our country.

AAmerican United Flag Across America
New Mexico Coordinators

Laurie Cummings
Dusty Steedman
Ruth Friesen
Dee Friesen