QPME: The Wounded Warriors

A competitor races against time and fellow athletes in a 30 kilometer cycling race at the 2015 Marine Corps Trials. Competition provides opportunities for the Marines to train as athletes, while increasing their strength so they can continue their military service or develop healthy habits for life outside the service.

The Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment enables wounded, ill, or injured Marines to focus on their abilities and to find new avenues to thrive. The fifth annual Marine Corps Trials were held at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., March 3-11. Athletes competed in archery, cycling, shooting, swimming, track, field, sitting volleyball, and wheelchair basketball. (Photo by Cpl. Jared Lingafelt)

Cpl. John Shelton, with Team Veteran and an Oklahoma City, OK native, finishes the last 100 meters of the 1500 meter race during the 2015 Marine Corps Trials aboard Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., March 10.

The Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment enables wounded, ill, or injured Marines to focus on their abilities and to find new avenues to thrive. The fifth annual Marine Corps Trials were held at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Calif., March 3-11. Athletes competed in archery, cycling, shooting, swimming, track, field, sitting volleyball, and wheelchair basketball. (Photo by Cpl. Owen Kimbrel)

Terminally ill active-duty Marine, Staff Sgt. Jack Blevins, races the Marine Corps Historic Half in a 13.1 mile trek through the city of Fredericksburg, Virginia on May 18, 2014. With the help of his fellow Marines and Sailor, Staff Sgt. Blevins was able to mark off an item on his bucket list. Former Marine Sgt. Chris Dockter, Gunnery Sgt. Michael Gillitzer, and Navy Corpsman Hospitalman 2nd Class Ruben Munoz pushed Staff Sgt. Blevins through the race, finishing in an impressive 2 hours and 26 minutes.

In addition to the four men serving in combat together, Gunnery Sgt. Gillitzer and Staff Sgt. Blevins now work together again in a different capacity. Gunnery Sgt. Gillitzer is a District Injured Support Coordinator (DISC) with the Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment. Through his duties as a DISC, Gunnery Sgt. Gillitzer provides a multitude of services to Marines and Veterans, including face-to-face visits, helping Marines register with the VA, and providing information on various community resources.

The Marine Corps Wounded Warrior Regiment, established in 2007, provides and enables assistance to combat and non-combat wounded, ill, and injured Marines, and Sailors attached to or in direct support of Marine units and their family members in order to assist them as they return to duty or transition to civilian life.

Marines from the Wounded Warrior Regiment observe the wreath laying ceremony at the Marine Memorial at Belleau Wood, France, May 25. To celebrate Memorial Day, and to mark the 96th anniversary of the historic Battle of Belleau Wood, U.S. Marines with their French counterparts gathered at Aisne-Marne American Cemetery to commemorate their fallen heroes.

Marines from Wounded Warrior Regiment attended the event as part of a professional military education program aimed to promote and advance their historical understanding of the Marine Corps and see the significance of the contributions they have made to their nation.