At Boots of Honor memorials, visitors are encouraged to write and leave messages at each of the boots. The notes are collected and mailed to the service member’s family. (Amy Cotta)
A massive outdoor tribute to post-9/11 fallen service members that puts on display thousands of worn combat boots — each representing a different service member who died — will be staged at temporary memorial sites in several states next month.
The memorials, which are quickly assembled and then taken down after the event, recognize service members who died during combat missions after Sept. 11, 2001 — including in Iraq, Afghanistan and now the ongoing conflict in Iran.
What began as a grassroots effort by a few Gold Star mothers more than a decade ago has grown into a much larger annual remembrance led by military families, nonprofits and military survivor services, organizers say.
Each boot, adorned with a flag, is tagged with the service member’s name, military photo, rank and branch, along with information on their final campaign.
The displays serve as a visible reminder of the toll that war exacts, organizers say.
“I know it’s not a headstone. It’s not a gravesite or a memorial in the traditional sense, but it is a complete representation of who this person was — it is overwhelming,” said Terry Burgess, whose 29-year-old son, Army Staff Sgt. Bryan Burgess, died in 2011, when his unit was ambushed in Afghanistan.
A tribute to Army Staff Sgt. Bryan Burgess, killed in an ambush in Afghanistan in 2011, is included in the Boots of Honor memorial. Burgess is shown in Kunar Province on Nov 10, 2010. (Terry Burgess)
Bryan Burgess was killed along with five other members of his unit in the attack.
The tributes are known by different names, including Boots of Honor, Boots of the Fallen and Boots on the Ground for Heroes.
Donated boots come from service members, veterans and military families.
Events in May are scheduled at Fort Bragg, in North Carolina; Bicentennial Park, in Franklin, Tenn.; and Fort Adams State Park, in Rhode Island. Dates vary by location, because each display is independently operated.
Fort Hood, in Texas, has not publicly announced a date for its long-running annual display, which traditionally is held Memorial Day weekend.
People who plan to attend are advised to check with the specific location for the schedule. Some of the displays are one component of a much larger event, organizers said.
“The boots represent not just a fallen service member but a family,” said Burgess, who attended several memorials at Fort Campbell, Ky., where his son was stationed.
Burgess said that he and his wife, Elisabeth, walked along the rows of boots that form the temporary memorials to view the tribute to his son as well as to pause and read the names of the other service members in his unit who died.
Fort Campbell ended its annual display in 2025. But a new event is about to debut in Tennessee.
“The Boots of Honor Memorial is a visual and emotional tour de force,” said Amy Cotta, founder and executive director of Memories of Honor, a nonprofit that stages the memorial in Franklin, Tenn. A boot is prepared for display in Franklin, Tenn. (Amy Cotta)
A volunteer helps inventory combat boots for an outdoor memorial at Fort Campbell, Ky. The Fort Campbell event this year will move to Bicentennial Park in Franklin, Tenn. (Philip Cook)
“The Boots of Honor Memorial is a visual and emotional tour de force,” said Amy Cotta, founder and executive director of Memories of Honor, a nonprofit that stewards the memorial in Franklin, Tenn.
The memorial will open for the first time on May 16 and run through May 20, she said.
“For the Franklin memorial in 2026, 7,470 single combat boots will be displayed. Each boot represents a U.S. service member killed in combat since 9/11,” Cotta said.
Philip Cook, a medically retired Army veteran, said he volunteers at Boots of Honor events as a way to remember his fallen buddies.
Cook, who helps set up the displays, brings with him an American flag with the name tags of comrades who died sewn across the stripes. There are 13.
“The flag is dedicated to those who lost their lives. Soldiers I served with and worked side by side with were lost from combat injuries — roadside bombs, unfortunately. Two committed suicide after deployment,” said Cook, who served with the 2nd Brigade of the 101st Airborne on multiple tours in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The flag and the boots are personal connections that rekindle memories. “I want to make sure these soldiers and their contributions are never forgotten,” Cook said.
At the memorials, visitors are encouraged to write and leave messages next to or inside the single boots.
The notes are collected at the end of the event and mailed to the service member’s family, Cook said.
“It means a lot to families that a service member is not forgotten,” Cook said. “Children each year get to see that people they’ve never met are thanking their dad or mom for their military service and for giving their life to protect our freedoms.”
“These events serve as a reminder that every day should be a day of gratitude to those who gave the ultimate sacrifice,” he said.
Army veteran Philip Cook, who volunteers to help set up the boot displays, carries with him an American flag with the name tags of comrades who died sewn across the stripes. (Philip Cook)
Each boot is tagged with the name, photo, rank and branch of service members, along with the campaign where they lost their life. (Philip Cook)
A Gold Star mother views a memorial to her son at a Boots of Honor tribute. (Philip Cook)
