Grandma’s Marathon honors 148th Fighter Wing with public service award
Grandma’s Marathon honored the Duluth-based 148th Fighter Wing, a unit that helps define race weekend with its flyover and supports deployed Airmen overseas.
Grandma’s Marathon used one of its most visible traditions to honor one of Duluth’s most visible military units, naming the Minnesota National Guard’s 148th Fighter Wing as the 2026 Rudy Perpich Public Service Award recipient. The award was presented Thursday morning during a breakfast at The Garden Event Center in Duluth, with race weekend attention already centered on the city and its largest annual event.
The Perpich award is given annually to current or former elected officials or public employees who have shown immense dedication and service to Grandma’s Marathon. In this case, the recognition reaches beyond ceremony. The 148th has long been part of the marathon’s public identity, from the ceremonial flyover at the start line to the race’s support for deployed service members who still want a piece of home while serving overseas.
The wing’s local footprint is substantial. Based in Duluth, the 148th Fighter Wing has more than 1,000 Airmen and flies the F-16CM Block 50 Fighting Falcon. It is one of only two Air National Guard wings tasked with suppression of enemy air defense support, a mission that gives the unit a national role while keeping its home anchored in St. Louis County. Its roots trace to the 393rd Fighter Squadron in World War II, and it was reactivated on Sept. 17, 1948, as the 179th Fighter Squadron in Duluth.
That home connection has played out in practical ways around Grandma’s Marathon. The event has sent finisher medals, shirts and other race supplies overseas for deployed 148th members taking part in virtual events, keeping them tied to one of Duluth’s signature weekends even when they are far from Lake Superior. The flyover has become one of Grandma’s Marathon’s most treasured traditions, and Col. Scott Prom said he would be one of the pilots flying over the 50th annual race in 2026.
The award also fits a broader pattern. Chad Nagorski and Lake County Ambulance and Mayo Clinic Ambulance received the honor in 2025, Father John Petrich and the Clifton Volunteer Fire Department were recognized in 2024, and Pete Goman and Mike Tusken were honored in 2023. Grandma’s Marathon says more than 20,000 participants take part each June, with close to 3,500 volunteers working more than 40,000 hours a year, and the 148th’s recognition adds another layer to the civic network that makes race weekend run.
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