The Gold Mile is an experience for OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon participants and it pays tribute to fallen service members and their surviving families (Gold Star Families). This motivational, mile-long segment of the Indy Mini course features patriotic décor and hundreds of volunteers lining Mile 6 at the backstretch of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, offering participants encouragement at the toughest peak of the course.
Dressed in gold shirts, these remarkable volunteers will greet #IndyMini participants while holding American flags, pictures, banners, messages, and sentimental items of their fallen heroes to recognize these brave men and women.
The Gold Mile provides OneAmerica 500 Festival Mini-Marathon participants with the opportunity to honor and celebrate the lives of service members who gave the ultimate sacrifice and connect with the surviving family members of the fallen. The tribute will provide inspiration, motivation, and support for participants and surviving family members.
The
500 Festival works with Survivor Outreach Services, a program designed to
provide support to families who have experienced the loss of a service member,
as well as other veteran, military, and family organizations to develop the Gold
Mile and recruit volunteers to participate in this tribute.