TMS Rick Schumacher, Park University

I haven’t really run since I left the Army. That was in 2004. I have a couple of pretty severe back injuries that have always held me back. Last year, I helped with the Pat’s Run Shadow Run in Austin, TX and had the opportunity to represent Tillman Military Scholars side-by-side with TMS Angela Durko. She ran and I stayed behind guarding the purses, water and breakfast tacos. At the end of that Pat’s Run, Angela challenged me to run with her the next year.

In August, I quit smoking. In January, I joined a gym. Those 4.2 miles ran off in the distance. I was looking forward to meeting the challenge that Angela had given me. Then in March, I was accepted into a study that might help with one of my back injuries. I had two procedures and was immediately unable to walk without a cane. Since it was a new study, no one was entirely sure what the pain level would be like. For weeks, I stumbled. I was unable to go to the gym. I was practically unable to get out of bed. I was sure at this point that I was not going to be able to meet my challenge. By now, Angela’s words were amplified. I thought about Pat Tillman, his legacy and my part of that legacy as a Tillman Military Scholar. I woke up early and stretched every day. I walked around the block with my cane. After a week I was able to walk without the cane for a bit. I was hoping to walk a portion of the 4.2 as a sign that I was trying to live up to the legacy.

The day of the run arrived. I woke up early. I was able to walk without the cane at all. I decided that I would suit up in my running clothes, just in case I was able to walk part of the course. I met up with Angela, the awesome ASU Alumni and 40 or so runners dressed in red and black Pat’s Run race shirts. We all walked down to the starting line on the edge of Lady Bird Lake in Austin. I thought about my past, as an Army Paratrooper, how 5Ks were a weekly routine. I thought again about Pat Tillman and what I thought he would have done. I saw photos from other Tillman Military Scholars getting set to run in Tempe. I thought about Angela’s challenge. And then I ran.

Thousands of participants lined the streets of Tempe on April 16, 2011 for the 7th Annual Pat's Run.

7th Annual Pat's Run Race Start

Amongst the crowd in gold were 26 of 111 Tillman Military Scholars who made the trip to Tempe to participate in this year’s Pat’s Run.

Tillman Military Scholars Bonnie Contreras (with daughter Kenya) and Patrick Nelson hold the Finish Line tape.

Pat’s teammate and former ASU and NFL quarterback, Jake Plummer, was the official race starter and participants were thrilled to see him back in sunny Arizona.

Official Race Starter and Pat's former Sun Devil and Cardinal teammate, Jake Plummer.

The 4.2 mile run/walk ends on the 42-yard line of Arizona State University’s Sun Devil Stadium, symbolic of the #42 jersey Pat wore while he was a Sun Devil football player. The event also featured a Kids Run where more than 2,300 children participated in a .42 mile race.

Pat's Run Kids Run Start

Through a partnership with the Arizona State University Alumni Association and with support from Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, 4.2 mile Pat’s Run Shadow Runs were held in 21 cities spanning from San Diego, California to Washington, D.C. Over 1,200 Pat Tillman Foundation supporters joined across the U.S. to shadow the run in Tempe.

San Francisco Shadow Run

In addition, over a thousand servicemembers participated in casual Troop Runs coordinated and organized by U.S. military in Afghanistan, El Salvador, England, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey.

Kandahar Airfield Troop Run

More than $1 million was generated at the 7th Annual Pat’s Run which will directly support the Foundation’s mission to invest in veterans and their families through education and community.

Currently, the Pat Tillman Foundation is reviewing 1,242 applications submitted by deserving servicemembers and dependents during the 2011 online application process. In June, the Pat Tillman Foundation will pledge over a million dollars in scholarship support to the third class of Tillman Military Scholars.

To date, the Pat Tillman Foundation has invested over $3.5 million in educational resources to support individuals committed to a life of service both in and out of uniform.