Pat Tillman Foundation

Guest Discussion
1

Pat Tillman, the former NFL player who was killed last April in Afghanistan, was a good friend of mine. The Pat Tillman Foundation, developed by his close friends and family, is having an event on Saturday, April 16, here in Tempe, AZ, called “Pat’s Run.” My company, Alaris Aviation, is sponsoring the event and I am in charge of the Silent Auction. The run/walk is 4.2 miles (to honor his football jersey for ASU, #42). You can read more about the run on my website, www.alarisaviation.com. Start looking for more media coverage from ESPN, USA Today, FOX Sports, and the AP Press. We should have over 10,000 in attendance and are hoping for over 5,000 runners! All proceeds benefit the Pat Tillman Foundation. Please let me know if you are interested in participating in any way (treasure, time or talent!)! The weather is great here in AZ and we would love to have some more COPA members represented! Come run with us for a great cause to show our support for PatÂ’s legacy of Leadership through Action. Call me if you have any questions at 623-551-6226. www.alarisaviation.com

Kara Swensen Owner Alaris Aviation LLC Scottsdale AZ

2

Wish I could make that. Pat Tillman is an incredible American. I hope you raise a lot of money in his name.

3

Kara,
Is there an address to send a donation if you can’t make the run? I was flying off the USS Constellation when Pat joined the army. I read about it in Sports Illustrated on board the ship. Everyone in my squadron was very impressed with this guy. The fact that he was killed by friendly fire takes nothing away from what this guy was all about. I agree with Hondo. The most important thing about Pat, and countless others over there, is not how he died but how he lived. He’s a hero all the way.
I’m a big fan of The Jim Rome show, a great sports talk show on during the week. He devoted a tremendous amount of time talking about Pat after he was killed and I also believe was the MC at his funeral. After hearing on the show about the kind of life this guy lived, it really made me wish I had known him. I’m sure you count yourself lucky to have been close to him. This guy was the real deal.

4

Thank you Ben for your support. And thank you for your own military service. I come from a Navy family (Dad flew F-4’s & Mom was a nurse; grew up in JAX) and respect for our military is something my family truly takes pride in. Pat’s Run should make over $100K, which is truly exciting. I’m happy to be a financial sponsor and board member for Pat’s Run. Pat and I were friends for nine years and I’m so happy to have found a lifelong volunteer opportunity that I can truly put my heart into. April 16, the day of the race, will be unique and special as it marks two years since I had seen Pat and Marie. Again, thank you for your own military service. It is much appreciated.

5

Pat Tillman was indeed a devoted and patriotic American, which makes it even more tragic to learn that he was shot in error by his own troops.

I hope the event raises a mint!

Cheers,
Roger

6

Kara,
We have spoken before. As a former Army Spec Ops guy(SF)I commend you for what you are doing for your friend and our ‘brother’. I believe Roger’s link to the news article to be most unfortunate. First I have learned by vast experience that the press rarely “gets it right”. Second, fire-fights are chaotic and intentionally lethal, the problem being that bullets have no conscience. I don’t know what happened that night even though I know the father of the Co Cdr. I didn’t ask because it isn’t for me TO ask at this point. If the men involved “screwed up” they will face the consequences of their actions. No human will ever punish them in a way that they will punish themselves, ever single day. Each one of them would gladly trade their life for his, they would have that night and would do so even quicker today. That was “their” brother. We had a saying “Anything is easy for the SOB that doesn’t have to do it”. Unless they were there and can ‘accurately’ debrief everything that happened, my suggestion would be to keep one’s pie hole shut and thank God that there are men and women who stand ready to give their last true measure of devotion for our freedoms.

Kara, thanks again so much. I know from talking to you that Pat was your close friend, you do him great honor by your work. I’ll get this info out through the Spec Ops community.

7

Thank you, Roger. I’ll report back how much we earn total after the race. Hope you and Caroline will be able to fly over for the event. If so, make sure to introduce yourself. I’ll be at the Silent Auction with a walkie-talkie and then on the podium at 10:30.

8

In reply to:

I’ll be at the Silent Auction with a walkie-talkie…

Kara,
Wouldn’t you need a walkie-no-talkie then…?

  • Mike.
9

In reply to:

Is there an address to send a donation if you can’t make the run?

Ben,

To donate online to this worthy cause, or for the mailing address for donations, go to

http://www.pattillmanfoundation.net/get-involved/donate.php.

Cheers,
Roger

10

If you go to my website, www.alarisaviation.com, you can click through to links for Pat’s Run and the Pat Tillman Foundation. If you would like to donate something specifically for the auction or the run, you can send it directly to me. For example, some people are donating $100 in their absence and that money is being used to sponsor children and/or families who are participating. We have one woman running with her three children. Her husband is a soldier at Camp Patrick Tillman in Afghanistan. We have had donated airline tickets from SWA, hotel room from a local resort, and their entrance fee by someone like yourself.