Young Marines complete the Bataan Memorial Death March

[Miami Valley, Ohio, March 17, 2019] It was a cross-country journey for three local Young Marines and two of their Adult Staff members. They made a two-day journey from the Miami Valley all the way to White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico for a unique and challenging experience… the Bataan Memorial Death March.

If you search online for the Bataan Death March you will learn about the U.S. and Philippine troops who surrendered to the Japanese forces on April 9, 1942 in the Bataan Peninsula on the Philippine island of Luzon during World War II. On that day 75,000 Filipino and American servicemembers were forced to perform an arduous 65-mile march to their prison camp. This subjected them to intense heat and harsh treatment by the Japanese guards. Thousands died along the route. It is for those that survived or perished on this hike in which the memorial hike remembers.

YM/GySgt John Sollinger (18) of Huber Heights, YM/Sgt Karl Slader (15) of Fairborn, and YM/LCpl Emma Marlow (13) of Troy joined two of their adult leaders for the 26.2-mile memorial hike on 17 March. Two other Young Marine Units were also at the missile range with them, the Tornado Alley Young Marines of Wichita, KS and the West Texas Young Marines of El Paso.

“We knew going into the event that it was going to be difficult,” said Karl Slader, platoon sergeant of the Miami Valley Young Marines. “The difficult of this 26.2-mile hike really put into perspective how horrific the march was for those who endured the real one back in 1942.”

All the members of the Miami Valley Young Marines and the other two units completed the whole arduous hike. While there was plenty of pain and blisters upon completion, none of them regretted their participation in the Bataan Memorial Death March. To learn more about the hike visit bataanmarch.com.

About the Young Marines

The Young Marines is a national non-profit 501c (3) youth education and service program for boys and girls, age eight through the completion of high school. The Young Marines promotes the mental, moral and physical development of its members. The program focuses on teaching the values of leadership, teamwork and self-discipline, so its members can live and promote a healthy, drug-free lifestyle.

Since the Young Marines' humble beginnings in 1959 with one unit and a handful of boys, the organization has grown to 264 units with 8,950 youth and 2,600 adult volunteers in 39 states, the District of Columbia and Okinawa with affiliates in other countries.

For more information, visit our website at www.miamivalleyyoungmarines.com or the National website at www.youngmarines.com.