Ceremony brings back AFROTC alum to campus following tours in Afghanistan and Germany

Since her earliest days, Baylor students have answered our nation’s call in military service. Soldiers of the Wooden Cross: Military Memorials of Baylor University recently chronicled the stories of Baylor veterans killed in service during the Civil War, World War I and II, Korea, Vietnam, and Iraqi Freedom.

While military education began on campus in 1888, formal commissioning programs were not established until Air Force ROTC arrived in 1948 as one of the nation’s first officer training programs. More recently, Army ROTC joined Baylor’s military programs in 2008. Over the years, Baylor graduates have served in many roles flinging their green and gold afar in military service.

Shane Runyon, BSN ’01, serves as an Air Force intensive-care nurse at Joint Base San Antonio, Brook Army Medical Center. He is also part of a three-person Critical Care Air Transport Team (CCATT) that evacuates war-wounded service men and women from forward locations via a highly portable ICU to medical treatment facilities — whether they are in combat areas or stateside. He has served three six-month tours with CCATT teams in Germany and Afghanistan, transporting, comforting and saving the lives of our wounded.

Last Friday, Runyon returned to campus for a memorable event — his promotion to major in the Air Force Nurse Corps. Because Shane originally commissioned at Pat Neff Hall in 2001, he wanted to return to the Ring of Honor to recite his oath of office for promotion. Lt. Col. (ret.) Jeff Bowles, BBA ’83, director of electronic marketing for Baylor and former AFROTC Det 810 commander (2001-04) presided while Runyon’s family looked on.

Sic ’em, Shane and Baylor/Air Force nurses!