University of North Carolina Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps midshipmen and staff members spent their spring break honoring those who came before them.

Five UNC NROTC midshipmen and two staff members of the Tar Heel Battalion joined 6,600 comrades at the 27th Bataan Memorial Death March, March 19. The midshipmen spent the final weekend of spring break honoring the heroic service members who defended the Philippine Islands during World War II.

The Bataan Memorial Death March, a full 26.2-mile marathon through the rugged terrain and sandy trails at the base of the Organ Mountains at White Sands, honors a special group of World War II heroes - the soldiers responsible for defending the islands of Luzon, Corregidor and the harbor defense forts of the Philippines under nearly impossible conditions.

Fighting in a region plagued by malaria, they were hampered by outdated equipment and nearly no air power. They survived on quarter rations and received no medical help. The event provided the midshipmen with a unique education opportunity and a chance to meet the survivors of the Bataan Death March who attend, less and less each year.

While multiple categories are offered, all five midshipmen and one staff member opted for the Military Heavy Division, completing the entire trek in the Navy Working Uniform and carrying a minimum of 35 pounds in their packs. The extra weight, all food, was donated at the end of the race. In total, the Tar Heel Battalion donated over 200 pounds of food to the Roadrunner Food Bank - part of an overall 24,000 pounds donated by all participants and volunteers.

Students and staff spent the chilly winter months in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, balancing schoolwork and battalion commitments, training for the event.

"This is probably the hardest thing I've ever done" said Midshipmen 3rd Class Thomas Singley, one of the five student participants. "It isn't just about being physically ready; it was a mental challenge too. But, meeting some of the survivors and seeing the wounded warriors out marching with us, it gave me what I needed to keep going."

The trip, part of the UNC NROTC's strategic initiatives to enhance education outside the classroom and promote a culture of fitness, was a resounding success - bringing together physical training, military history, and community service. The Tar Heel Battalion also thanked VR-56 and VR-57 for providing transport to and from the event.

Rear Adm. Stephen C. Evans oversees the NROTC program as commander of Naval Service Training Command headquartered at Naval Station Great Lakes, Illinois. NROTC was established to develop midshipmen mentally, morally and physically and to imbue them with the highest ideals of duty, loyalty and Navy core values in order to commission college graduates as naval officers who possess a basic professional background, are motivated toward careers in the naval service and have a potential for future development in mind and character so as to assume the highest responsibilities of command, citizenship and government.

NSTC oversees 98 percent of initial officer and enlisted accessions training for the Navy, as well as the Navy's Citizenship Development program. NSTC includes Recruit Training Command, the Navy's only boot camp at Naval Station Great Lakes, NROTC at more than 160 colleges and universities, Officer Training Command at Naval Station Newport, Rhode Island, Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps and Navy National Defense Cadet Corps citizenship development programs at more than 600 high schools worldwide.

For more information about NROTC, visit www.nrotc.navy.mil

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