Registration for 19th Annual Pat’s Run open

TEMPE, AZ (Arizona’s Family) – Registration for the 19th Annual Pat’s Run presented by TEKsystems kicked off Tuesday.

This year’s Pat’s Run will take place on Saturday, April 15, at Arizona State University’s Tempe campus. The starting horn for the first wave of runners and walkers will sound at 7:05 a.m.

The 4.2-mile course circles around Downtown Tempe and ends on the 42-yard line of Sun Devil Stadium. There is a shorter 0.42-mile course for kids.

Participants will get a Pat’s Run T-shirt and medal, both of which are newly designed every year. We can’t show you the 2023 medal yet, but we’ll post it here for you as soon as possible. We can tell you this: It’s fantastic! (as usual!)

4.2 miles, 0.42 miles, 42-yard line - What’s with the 42s?

Forty-two was Pat Tillman’s jersey number with he played football for the ASU Sun Devils. He led the Devils to the Rose Bowl in 1997, capping off an undefeated season.

He went on to play for the Arizona Cardinals, but left the NFL to join the Army after the 9/11 attacks. He was killed by friendly fire in Afghanistan in April 2004.

Tillman’s family and friends started Pat’s Run the next year. It has since become the largest organized run in the Southwest. The 42s are a symbol of his legacy.

The Tillman Foundation and Pat’s Run

Pat’s Run is the signature fundraiser for the Pat Tillman Foundation, which provides academic scholarships to military members, veterans, and their spouses. Tillman believed in the importance of education, graduating summa cum laude with a marketing degree from ASU’s W.P. Carey School of Business. He did it in less than four years.

Far more important than how he died is how Tillman lived and the principles that guided him -- service, scholarship, humble leadership, and determination to have an impact.

“Somewhere inside, we have a voice,” Tillman said. “It leads us in the direction of the person we wish to become, but it is up to us whether or not to follow.”

Tillman followed that voice and inspired others to do the same. The inspiration lives on and flourishes with each new Tillman Scholar. There are more than 800 of them from nearly 170 universities. With your help, the Pat Tillman Foundation has invested $24 million in them and, by extension, the future of our country and world.

19th Annual Pat’s Run: Rise Above

With the theme “Rise Above,” this year’s Pat’s Run is in person, but there’s still a virtual option for those who prefer it. And, as always, it’s a family-friendly event.

Last year’s run was the first in-person event following a two-year hiatus because of the pandemic, and it was a huge success. More than 20,000 people turned out for it.

Photos from 2022 Pat’s Run

Like last year, Arizona’s Family is a proud sponsor of Pat’s Run and is honored to support the Pat Tillman Foundation for a seventh year.

Pat’s Run registration fee calendar

• Feb. 15 -- $49
• March 1 -- $50
• March 18 -- $51
• April 1 -- $52

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