Blog
We're excited to announce our inaugural educational grant recipient, named in honor of the late LtCol Chris "Otis" Raible.
Head over to the Education page for more details! And if you know qualified and deserving candidates attending post-secondary school, be sure to spread the word for our 2016 educational initiatives once announced later this spring!
Another great event in the books! This past Friday, February 26th, The Wingman Foundation paired up with one of San Diego’s newest gastropubs to farewell 2015 and take advantage of the great food and 25 beers on tap. The Brew Project graciously opened up their business, allowing The Wingman crowd to take over the entire second floor of the venue with a full service bar to boot. Additionally, The Brew Project donated a portion of the night’s proceeds directly to The Wingman Foundation!
Enjoying a few drinks wasn’t our only objective. The Wingman Foundation staff had the opportunity to thank a handful of our incredible supporters face to face. Aircrew from nearly every Marine Corps aviation community were present. The diversity in the crowd goes to show how deep the roots of brother and sisterhood run. We think it’s safe to chalk this one up as a huge success, and we can’t wait to see everyone at the next event. Remember, NEVER leave a wingman behind!
Thanks to you, we were able to provide over $40,000 to more than a dozen families affected by aviation mishaps in 2015! Check out our infographic for more details.
And let's all hope that there's no further need for us in 2016 and beyond.
Phew, what a great weekend! This is the Wingman Foundation coming to you following an exciting three-day celebration of aviation at the 2015 Miramar Airshow. In case you missed it, the airshow was hosted by Marine Corps Air Station Miramar and ranked as the largest military airshow in the nation. The event welcomed an estimated 700,000 patrons looking to catch a glimpse of our nation’s finest.
Whether you were there to witness the aerobatic formation maneuvers of the U.S. Navy Blue Angels and Patriots Jet Team or take a stroll through a U.S. Marine Corps CH-53E, we hope you were able to swing by the Wingman Foundation booth in Hangar 3.
Lucky for us, we were able to meet many of you and spread the word of our organization’s cause. That is, to never leave a wingman behind. Over our three days at the airshow, we had the fortunate opportunity to not only speak with individuals but aid in fundraising through the collection of donations and sales of Wingman merchandise. So, if you were able to stop by our booth to chat with one of our volunteers or make a purchase, thank you for taking the time to help further our organization’s reach.
A highlight for the volunteer staff this weekend was the chance to shake hands with a family that benefited from the organization’s purpose. In May of this year, an MV-22 Osprey carrying 22 Marines had a hard-landing at Bellows Air Force Base in Hawaii. The Wingman Foundation stepped in to help assist with family member transportation from the continental United States to victims’ bedsides in Hawaii. We hope that this brought a little assurance in a time of uncertainty and was the first step in the healing process. A stark reminder of why The Wingman Foundation was founded.
If you missed our booth or were unable to attend this year’s airshow, we hope to catch you at one of our future events. Stay tuned at wingmanfoundation.org as we roll out event schedules, new swag, and organization announcements. Before we sign off, how awesome is this little Wingman? Could be the new face of the Foundation. What do you think?
The run is in the history books and I finished with 80 miles after 22 consecutive hours of running (with a few breaks here and there for food and foot care). Around mile 50, I began having IT band pain, forcing me to power hike. As the pain grew progressively worse, I eventually had to consider the real risk of injury, and time was not on my side at my degraded pace.
In the dark hours of the morning, it was the memory of LtCol Chris Raible and Sgt Bradley Atwell's heroic actions on 14 Sept 2012 that kept me going. It was thoughts of the many veterans who are unable to do what I was doing because of injuries received in combat or because they never returned home. I am proud and honored for the privilege of representing our heroes.
A videographer performs an on-the-run documentary about ultra-marathons.
The sport of ultra marathon is one that forces you to find your physical and mental limits, then convince yourself that your body can and will do much more than you thought possible (unless of course pushing your body is about to result in a real injury). As David Goggins says: "When you think that you are done, you're only about 40% in to what your body is capable of doing." I will tackle the 100 mile distance again, but not for quite some time.
Although I came up short of the 100 mile goal, it was not for lack of support and encouragement from you all. The race director was amazed at how many of you sent encouragement during the event, he even took a personal interest in helping me achieve the goal.
For those of you who pledged per mile, look for an email with the final amount based on 80 miles completed. The final tally of funds raised for the LtCol "Otis" Raible Scholarship by The Wingman Foundation was $10,079. Again, thank you for your support.
-- Captain Mike "SARS" Harris
