PRINCETON UNIVERSITY ARMY ROTC TO HOLD RUN FOR THE WARRIORS 5K, ON APRIL 25, 2009

By CPT Nick Sanchez
Princeton, NJ, April 13, 2009 – Princeton University Army ROTC presents the Run for the Warriors 5k. The race is dedicated to the men and women wounded in Afganistan and Iraq and their families. It’s a celebration of their strength and resolve as well as a promise that their sacrifices are not forgotten and their needs unmet.
Several wounded veterans will participate in the run and will be honored at a ceremony prior to its start. The New Jersey Patriot Guard Riders will be on hand and entertainment will be provided by the Roadhouse Band.
The route starts and ends near Fitz Randolph Road Field, near Princeton University’s Jadwin Gym  and includes the Delaware and Raritan Canal Towpath and views of Carnegie Lake and Princeton University. Registration is $10 for students and military personnel, $20 for general entry. Awards will be awarded to the overall winners and top three in each age group. All proceeds benefit Hope for the Warriors, an organization dedicated to supporting wounded veterans. Register online at www.hopeforthewarriors.org/princeton.html
About Hope for the Warriors – Established in 2006, Hope For The Warriors™ upholds a legacy of care for the wounded which began in October of 2004 when the reality of sacrifices given in the line of duty took a personal hold on co-founders and friends, Robin Kelleher and Shannon Maxwell. It was at this time that Shannon’s husband, LtCol Tim Maxwell, was severely wounded in Iraq after shrapnel from a mortar attack left him with a traumatic brain injury. Strengthened by the support of friends and family and an unwavering determination throughout recovery, a mission of advocacy began on behalf of Wounded Warriors and their families, whose network of support may not be sufficient or accessible as warranted by their injuries.
Time and experience have demonstrated that the Wounded Warriors, their spouses and children, posses an inner strength that allows them to carry themselves with pride and dignity despite the toll physical and emotional wounds afflict. Yet, despite a heroic outlook, physical and emotional wounds create unanticipated short and long-term needs for the service member and their families. These realizations became the core of Hope For The Warriors™’ impassioned drive to build hope beyond recovery.
 About Princeton University Army ROTC – The Princeton University ROTC Battalion develops the leaders of tomorrow. The Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) as it exists today, began with the signing of the NationalDefense Act of 1916, on June 3 of that year by President Woodrow Wilson. Military training had been taking place at civilian colleges and universities as early as 1819 but the signing of the National Defense Act brought this training under a single, Federally-controlled entity — the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) — for the first time.
From its beginning in 1746, Princeton University’s history has often paralleled the military history of the nation.  The University became a battleground of the Revolutionary War in 1777.  In 1783 the newly formed Congress received General George Washington at Nassau Hall and tendered him the Nation’s gratitude for his wartime services.  In 1919, following World War I, The War Department established as one of the 125 Army ROTC units, Princeton University Filed Artillery Battalion.  Stationed at Princeton that year was an instructional staff, which consisted of eight Regular Army Officers and an enlisted detachment of thirty men as well as 90 horses and a battery of four French 75mm guns.  While many changes have taken place since its inception in 1919, the Princeton ROTC unit traditionally remained a Filed Artillery unit until 1957 when the faculty approved adoption of a General Military Science Program.  Although some 9,972 Princeton men served in uniform in WWII, it was the 2,000 graduates of the ROTC program in the years between the wars that stood in the forefront as battlefield commanders or in key staff positions.  The record of Princeton men and women serving in WW II, Korean Conflict, Vietnam, The Gulf War, Bosnia, Kosovo, Afghanistan and now in Iraq has proven beyond a doubt the value to the Nation of Princeton ROTC training and its motto  “In the Nation’s service, in the service of all nations.”