The Naval Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program of Notre Dame will be holding its annual 24 hour run through campus from Friday at 6 p.m. to Saturday at 6 p.m. to raise money for St. Joseph’s County Special Olympics. The event will be held at Fieldhouse Mall.
Junior Michael Terranova, president of the Trident Naval Society, said that the event involves midshipmen raising money around campus.
“How it works is Midshipmen in the ROTC unit, the Naval ROTC unit, they run in tandem,” Terranova said. “So, it’s two guys per hour, one-hour shifts, and we go continuously for 24 hours … [We] run around campus collecting donations.”
Terranova said the group will keep the navy theme throughout the event.
“One midshipman will be dressed in a shark costume and one with a trident,” he said.
Since the tradition began, the midshipmen have realized that gamedays provide the best opportunity to raise money on campus because of the increased foot traffic it brings to the area.
“We do this every year,” he said. “Last year we raised $4,200, and it’s a really nice gameday tradition that we always do. It’s one game a year, so we chose Stanford because it’s a big game.”
Terranova said the event involves as many midshipmen as possible to help bring in more donations.
“As far as runners go, there’ll be 48 runners, and then we have everyone in the battalion manning the [donations] booth,” he said. “It’s an all hands evolution. So, it’s pretty big involvement.”
To capitalize on this exciting gameday atmosphere, Terranova said that the midshipmen plan to run everywhere and anywhere there are people.
“[We go] all over the place,” he said. “The main spots are the Dome, Main Circle, the landmarks, we run up to the tailgates, so you can see us out there.”
People who are interested in the cause will also be able to donate to St. Joseph’s County Special Olympics through Paypal.
Terranova said Naval ROTC appreciates St. Joseph’s County Special Olympics' dedication to helping raise the levels of confidence and competitiveness with those who struggle with developmental disabilities through the organizing of sporting events.
“[St. Joseph’s County Special Olympics] gives people who aren’t as fortunate the opportunity to express themselves through sport, to be competitive, to do things that we take for granted,” he said. “It’s important to help organizations like that, that give that opportunity to people who don’t necessarily have that given to them through no fault of their own.
“We’ve had a pretty good relationship with them over the years,” Terranova said. “They organize a bunch of sporting events for the challenged in South Bend … ROTC is always volunteering at Special Olympic events. It’s important that we give them this money, so they can keep doing … good things.”
