This year, the war is still here and the hearts of many of us already contain too many names, stories and faces. In such a reality, memory is no longer distant or merely ceremonial. It is very close. Sometimes personal. Almost everyone knows someone. A friend, a family member, a neighbor, or a friend of a friend. Each such story is another piece in the great puzzle of the pain and heroism of the place where we live.
This year we all experienced a particularly moving year, a year in which we were once again forced to fight for our lives in our beautiful country. During Memorial Day, which fell on Tuesday (4/21/2026), when we are all still in a difficult, challenging and uneasy period, but time does not stand still. In the "Run for Their Memory" race held on this day, many of the security forces also took part, including: the Carmel Coast District of the Israel Police, the Coast Guard, officers from the National Police College, IDF reserve soldiers, the Haifa Jeep Unit and MDA forces.
The "Running in Their Memory" project, for those who don't know, is an exciting and special national commemoration project that was established in 2017, with the aim of marking Memorial Day for the fallen of Israel's systems and victims of hostilities on foot. The project invited the general public throughout the country to go running, walking or cycling anywhere in the country and around the world, with each participant wearing the names of 2 fallen on their shirt: one they chose themselves and one that was automatically assigned to them from the database, so that no fallen person will be forgotten. of one of the fallen. The main idea is to make memory active and connect physical effort with the soil of the country and respect and appreciation for the legacy of those who fell.
Meanwhile, it should be noted that at the beginning of the run, police officer Hagai Panker from the Coastal District of the Israel Police led a "Yizkor" prayer in memory of the fallen soldiers of Israel and the victims of hostilities, and said during the run: "It is a great and immense privilege for me to be among the organizers of the race to take part in the "Runners in Their Memory" project and to participate in the run in memory of our soldiers, the heroes of Israel, the fallen soldiers of Israel. We ran with a lot of pride with the Israeli flag in our hands. May the memory of all the fallen soldiers of Israel and the victims of hostilities be blessed!"
