Heiny ’10 Runs in Support of TAPS
Press Release for December 7, 2011
Hargrave graduate Andrew Heiny’10 recently competed in the Marine Corp Marathon. Heiny participated in the marathon on behalf of Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors (TAPS), an organization dedicated to supporting families that have lost a loved one in service to the country.
“Running the race was a great experience that was only made possible through your grateful donations. As I mentioned before TAPS is a great organization that provides first line assistance to those families that have recently lost a loved one during their service to the nation,” writes Heiny. “When I first read and heard accounts of others experiences with the organization I knew it was a special cause that I wanted to be a part of. But it was not until the night before the race while sitting in a banquet with those families whose lives have been forever changed in the past years, I heard firsthand how much TAPS has done for them personally. I truly understood what great work each donation does for those families.
“During that same dinner I had the chance to meet with the family of Army Ssgt. Christopher Webb, who died on March 7, 2007 during Operation Iraqi Freedom. His widow and young daughter both sat and spoke with me about how much it meant to them that I was there in support of TAPS and the amount of joy that it brought them, seeing their loved one be honored as I ran with a picture of him pinned to my back. Each runner for TAPS received the same honor that night, as we all met that the family of the soldier who’s honor we would be running in the next day. In total ‘Team Long Grey Line’ (composed of 90 Cadets), earned $69,000 for TAPS this year. Each dollar goes directly to those families in need.
“The race itself was a great experience and was very enjoyable as we ran through our nation’s capital. After training hard it felt great to see how an actual race would feel. Fortunately, I never ‘hit the wall’ and was able to come in under my desired time and finished the race in 3 hours 27 minutes, a pace of 7:55 per mile for the 26.2 miles. Though I’m very pleased with performance and had a great time running it. I am not sure when my next marathon will be. Now that I have accomplished that goal I may move onto another great challenge or goal, one hopefully that involves less running.
“Again thank you very much for your donations and all the support.”
Heiny currently attends the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He is a member of the Class of 2014.
