Campus vet races for widows of fallen soldiers

Photo by Josh Lopez
Sara Gauthier trains at the CHP.

Sgt. Sarah Gauthier participated in a half marathon in Dayton, Ohio on Sept. 17 to raise money for the Air Force Enlisted Village. 

The fundraiser has collected $700 so far and will continue to collect until Oct 1. Gauthier’s goal is to raise $1,000 and is almost there. Donations are still in the process of coming in and will be sent to the Air Force Enlisted Village to help provide shelters and necessities for the widows of prior enlisted personnel.

Gauthier chose this certain nonprofit because she cares for the people and place dearly since it is so close to her family and friends that she encountered during her time at the air force base.

“I did a lot of volunteer work there when I was stationed at Eglin Air Force Base, since it’s right outside the gate,” Gauthier said. “The women became, sort of, my adopted grandparents.  I just fell in love with the place.”

Along with being able to get to know and grow friendships with the residents of the village, Gauthier also had family in the area, which made her care and appreciate the community even more so. These individuals gave her the motivation and the drive to help raise money for the village and the residents.

“I got to know the CEO Chief Master Sergeant of the Air Force number nine, Chief Binnicker,” Gauthier said. “I got to know him very well and he even helped my mom get a job there, so it sort of became part of my family.”

The main goal for the village is to provide a home for widows of prior enlisted personnel. Without the village many of them would be destitute due to their spouse’s pension not being financially enough for them to live off of.

 “My mom passed away two years ago and then the chief passed away a couple months after her, so I ran in their memory and to raise money for the widows there” Gauthier said.

There was also a 5K run, a 10k run, a half marathon and a full marathon. Altogether it was about 15,000 participants that ran in the marathons and helped raise money for the village.

 “The donations we raise go to making sure they have a home and a roof over their head,” Gauthier said.