On the morning of October 4th, 2015, Active Heroes said goodbye to a long time friend and board of advisor member, Justin Fitch. Justin fought state 4 colon cancer for years, inspiring a nation of veterans, military families and supporters to never give up on his “Final Mission” of building the Active Heroes Retreat Center.

Justin Fitch, born June 26th, 1982, was raised in Hayward, Wisconsin and a graduate of Michigan Tech with a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration. He served as an officer in the US Army and deployed to the Forward Operating Base McHenry in Iraq. Years later, Justin was diagnosed with metastic colon cancer yet continued to spread the message of “Never Giving Up” while support the charity Active Heroes. Justin was medically retired from the military on January 29, 2015 having attained the rank of Major. He continued his cancer treatment, living in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. Despite deteriorating health conditions, he fought to live his life to the fullest and enjoy his retirement while dedicating what time he could to Active Heroes.

Justin was instrumental in the growth of the Carry The Fallen ruck marches. He was one of the founding committee members of the ruck march movement for veteran suicide awareness. With his combined vision of the Active Heroes Retreat Center with Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran, Troy Yocum, the team was able to present the plan to build retreat center that would be free for veterans and military families to vacation. In 2013, Active Heroes was able to win a national contest to help purchase the retreat center located in Shepherdsville, KY.

Justin’s message continued to spread across America with the support of the American Heroes Channel, Raycom Media and Chive Charities. In just a few short days in 2015, Justin’s Final mission campaign raised over $300,000 towards the first cabins at the Active Heroes retreat that are set to start being built in November of 2015 and finish in Spring of 2016.

In the last few weeks of Justin’s life, he put together a series of videos for Active Heroes that will shared over the next few weeks. His “Final Mission” to build the Active Heroes Retreat Center carries forward with thousands of supporters, events and teams of volunteers who will never quit until the Active Heroes Retreat Center is finished.

To donate in memory of Justin Fitch, go to www.FinalMission.org