Pat’s Run: the Tillman Foundation Continues to Make Community Impact

In July 2002, ASU football legend Pat Tillman turned down a $3.6 million offer to play for the Arizona Cardinals and enlisted in the US army. Tillman was shot and killed while serving with the 75th Ranger Regiment in Afghanistan in 2004. In the aftermath of his death, Tillman’s family and friends created The Pat Tillman Foundation, to honor Tillman’s legacy and inspire others through his story.

The Tillman Foundation holds an annual run each April to raise money to support their “Leadership Through Action” programs, which their Web site says gives “students the tools and support to reach their fullest potential as leaders, no matter how they choose to serve.”

This year, the run will be held on Saturday, April 17.

John Bailon, a sustainability junior, father and veteran, is a Tillman Scholar who says he is very grateful for the positive impact the Tillman Foundation has had on his life. Bailon, who is from Shiprock, New Mexico, grew up on an Indian Reservation.

He is half Navajo and half Kewa Pueblo (formally known as Sainto Domingo Pueblo). After going to ASU for one year, his younger brother Cheston, an ASU marketing junior, convinced him to enlist in the Marines with him. The two traveled to Iraq together and served seven months in Operation Iraqi Freedom III in Al Anbar province with Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 25th Marines.

While serving, Bailon and his brother saw many parallels between living conditions and lack of opportunity for youth in the towns they were operating in and the reservation they grew up on. They came back and had an urge to help their community starting with a library. They called around looking for support from other organizations, and eventually crossed paths with Tillman Foundation.

John Bailon says the Tillman Foundation helped him transform his dream into something he and his brother could accomplish. “We went from this huge multi-million dollar project [of building a library] to something more tangible, and that was inspiring native youth to come to college.”

Working with mentor Pete Jennings, a Ph.D. student and veteran, the Bailons are beginning to implement programs to encourage students in Shiprock to continue their education. They have recognized that once in college, many people from their hometown end up dropping out of school. John Bailon says that while there are a lot of effort to get native Americans to come to college, they are often forgotten about once they get to school. Because of this, more Native Americans drop out of ASU than any other ethnic group. Their goal is to find ways to support these students throughout their college careers to decrease the drop-out rate of Native Americans.

John Bailon attributes much of his attitude and positive outlook on life to the Tillman Foundation. “It cultivated my leadership,” he says. The Bailons were members of the unit that, according to the Washington Post, saw the most combat since the Vietnam War. Coming home from

Iraq and immediately jumping back into school was difficult for many of John Bailon’s peers.

He says he saw many friends take different paths than he chose to — drinking heavily and falling into depression. But according to John Bailon, “we had all this energy and a bit of frustration, and we channeled it in a positive direction because we crossed paths with the Tillman Foundation.”

The Tillman Foundation has many events that teach the Tillman Scholars about leadership and how to have a positive impact on their community. One way they do this is through inspiring students with Pat’s story. Bailon says he is very encouraged by Pat, because he sees him as a tangible person rather than a fictional character.

Sitting on the Starbuck’s patio, John describes his many positive experiences with the Tillman Foundation. As we  talk, a man comes up and asks for change. Without hesitation, John gives him the change he has with a smile, and continues to describe the impact Pat has had on his life.

“I see Pat as a kick in the butt, the extra catalyst that makes your development a lot more realistic,” Bailon says.

One event that the Foundation holds takes place in the Tillman Tunnel, the tunnel that leads from the ASU football stadium locker to the field. The Foundation brings staff, family and friends of Tillman to meet with the Scholars and share Pat’s stories.

Bailon, as well as so many others, has been inspired and motivated by Tillman and the Foundation. Former Tillman Foundation intern and Pat’s Run volunteer, Victoria McPherson, encourages everyone to participate in Saturday’s event.

“The Run supports Pat’s legacy of striving for what you want, getting an education and doing what you love,” McPherson says. “The spirit at that race on that Saturday is unlike anything you’ve been around; its energizing and inspiring.”

Bailon says Pat’s Run not only supports the Foundation, but is also a great way to bring the community together.

“I think this run is a great way for the community to always have Pat in their mind,” Bailon says. “It’s an opportunity to celebrate with family and friends, running together or racing against each other, while supporting the Foundation and all of the programs it supports. It’s hard for me to make people understand how lucky I was to cross paths with the Foundation. None of these programs would exist without peoples support.”

Walk-up registration for the run is available on race day from 5:00 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. at Packard and Rio Salado drives. The run begins at 7 a.m. The 4.2 mile run symbolizes the number Tillman wore on his ASU football jersey. It ends on 42-yard line of Sun Devil Stadium. The Foundation also needs volunteers. If interested, sign-up is available online.