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4th of July Feature: ASU alumni help make Pat's Run an amazing experience

More on the Honor Runs... Opens in a new window List of the 2018 Honor Runs Opens in a new window
4th of July Feature: ASU alumni help make Pat's Run an amazing experience4th of July Feature: ASU alumni help make Pat's Run an amazing experience

By Craig Morgan, special for sundevils.com

The 14th annual Pat's Run in Tempe on Saturday, April 21, sold out fast. A total of 28,000 runners tackled the 4.2-mile race that went through Tempe and finished on the north side of Sun Devil Stadium. About 2,400 children participated in the 0.42-mile kids run for a total attendance of about 35,000 including volunteers and spectators.
 
The number is impressive, but it doesn't begin to tell the participation tale in the United States.

 

 

You talk about Arizona State University being No. 1 in innovation, it might be time to use these as an example. Can't make it to Tempe? The Arizona State Alumni Association has you covered.
 
Scattered across the nation, runners take part in honor runs (formerly called shadow runs) in at more than 30 cities including Atlanta, Austin, Texas; Boston, Boise, Idaho; Charleston, South Carolina; Charlotte, South Carolina; Chicago; Columbus, Ohio; Dallas; Denver; Detroit; Honolulu; Houston; Indianapolis; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Madison, Wisconsin; Miami; Minneapolis; New York; Omaha, Nebraska; Orange County, California; Philadelphia; Pinetop-Lakeside, Arizona; Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City; San Antonio; San Diego; San Francisco; San Jose, California; Seattle; St. Louis; and Washington.

Thousands of runners, volunteers and spectators do their part to help honor Tillman's legacy by supporting the signature fundraising event for the Pat Tillman Foundation's Tillman Scholars program.
 
"Pat stood out to me because he gave up a humongous career for our country and then he died for it," said San Jose run captain Andrea Jacobs. "He was obviously someone who would give back to his community. I wanted to do the same, in some small way."
 
The New York City is the largest of the shadow runs, with 583 runners expected, but runners are even encouraged to register as remote runners if they cannot attend one of the events.
 
Here are snapshots of four honor runs.
 
San Jose (Tillman's hometown)
Location: Leland High School (Tillman's high school) along the Los Alamitos Creek Trail.
Participants: About 150
Race date: April 14
Notable: Fourteen-year-old Jacob Kifle (30:44) and 12-year-old Emma Murphy (33:28) were the male and female winners in 2017. Murphy's family lives in the same area where Tillman grew up. Her mother went to Leland High School with Pat and was good friends with Marie, his wife. 
Quotable: The run ceased in San Jose for one year in 2010. Jacobs said she watched the documentary on Tillman, "The Tillman Story," and was so moved that she called the foundation and asked if she could organize a run for 2011.
 
"We started with 25 people and it has just kept growing every year since then," she said. "In last year's race, I had a lot of first-timers come out. A lot of people thanked me for continuing to keep it going so they could honor him. There were people who went to high school with him, ASU alumni, and even his mom, Mary, came. Hearing her voice telling his story was so powerful. I wish I had known him."
 
Atlanta
Location: Alpharetta, Georgia, North Point Mall
Participants: About 400
Race date: April 21
Notable: Atlanta Falcons coach Dan Quinn is the Grand Marshall for the event.
Quotable: "If I had a goal for this run and for many years forward, I would love to promote it to schools," said Houston run captain Seth Deitchman. "I want my kids to know his story. My No. 1 goal would be to have a million kids there. Pat should be in history books. Who is an American hero? Pat is. He defines selflessness."

 

 

Chicago
Location: Along Lake Michigan from Waveland Ave. to Fullerton Ave.
Participants: Between 130-150
Race date: April 21
Notable: Two years ago, NFL Films attended the Chicago run to shoot footage for the documentary, "Pat Tillman: A Football Life." Marie Tillman, who lives in Chicago, participated in the run.
Quotable: "I'm a Gold Star family member," Chicago run captain Chris Lafferty said. "I lost my best friend (private first class Gebrah Noonan) in Iraq in 2010. Pat's story really resonated with me, not how he was killed but mostly how he lived his life. 

"We weren't sure after the 2013 run if we could continue to put the time into organizing the run if people weren't going to show up. However, determined to continue to honor Pat, the ASU Chicago Chapter and myself made dramatic changes to the course location, the day-of experience (including adding a post-run party and toast to Pat), and including other interested groups outside of ASU. It's a great alumni association chapter here and I want to give them their due credit."
 

 

Houston
Location: Memorial Park
Participants: Between 60-70
Race date: April 21
Notable: Houston run captain Robby Alridge played basketball at ASU for three years, the first two under coach Rob Evans; his senior year under Herb Sendek.
Quotable: "When you look at what the Tillman Foundation provides for those servicemen and women coming home with various issues like PTSD (posttraumatic stress disorder), you can't help but want to support it," Alridge said. "We get police officers, firefighters, men and women who are still serving, veterans and just people who want to honor Pat. Being a former Sun Devil athlete, I know he's a Sun Devil legend."
 
The last word
"Honor is a word that comes up a lot when talking about Pat or Pat's Run, and it's a word I keep coming back to when I think about him. There is so much to admire about him. I think the lesson is that if you live a good life, that will shine through no matter how dark your circumstances are. It's been an honor and pleasure to be a small part of the Tillman Foundation." — Chris Lafferty, Chicago run captain