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War veteran gets Seton Hill baseball jersey a decade late | TribLIVE.com
Westmoreland

War veteran gets Seton Hill baseball jersey a decade late

Stephen Huba
Stephen Huba
gtrRumbaugh01042917
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Marine Corp corporal Brandon Rumbaugh, of Uniontown, receives his old jersey from Seton Hill baseball coach Marc Marizzaldi, as part of a presentation that include a 500 dollar donation to the 'It's All About the Warrior' foundation, during the break between the double header baseball game against Clarion, at Seton Hill University in Greensubrg, on Friday, April 28, 2017. The baseball team is also selling t-shirts to raise money for the foundation, in honor of Rumbaugh, who played on the team, but joined the Marines after just one semester. Rumbaugh lost both his legs in an explosion in Afghanistan, and uses his story to help motivate others.
gtrRumbaugh02042917
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Marine Cpl. Brandon Rumbaugh of Uniontown receives a $500 check for the It's About the Warrior Foundation from Seton Hill baseball coach Marc Marizzaldi during the break between the doubleheader baseball game against Clarion at Seton Hill University on Friday, April 28, 2017. The baseball team is selling T-shirts to raise money for the foundation in Rumbaugh's honor. Rumbaugh played on the team but joined the Marines after just one semester. He lost his legs in an explosion in Afghanistan.
gtrRumbaugh03042917
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Marine Corp corporal Brandon Rumbaugh, of Uniontown, receives his old jersey from Seton Hill baseball coach Marc Marizzaldi, as part of a presentation that include a 500 dollar donation to the 'It's All About the Warrior' foundation, during the break between the double header baseball game against Clarion, at Seton Hill University in Greensburg, on Friday, April 28, 2017. The baseball team is also selling T-shirts to raise money for the foundation, in honor of Rumbaugh, who played on the team, but joined the Marines after just one semester. Rumbaugh lost both his legs in an explosion in Afghanistan, and uses his story to help motivate others.
gtrRumbaugh04042917
Dan Speicher | Tribune-Review
Marine Corp corporal Brandon Rumbaugh, of Uniontown, receives his old jersey from Seton Hill baseball coach Marc Marizzaldi, as part of a presentation that include a 500 dollar donation to the 'It's All About the Warrior' foundation, during the break between the double header baseball game against Clarion, at Seton Hill University in Greensubrg, on Friday, April 28, 2017. The baseball team is also selling t-shirts to raise money for the foundation, in honor of Rumbaugh, who played on the team, but joined the Marines after just one semester. Rumbaugh lost both his legs in an explosion in Afghanistan, and uses his story to help motivate others.

Friday was a homecoming of sorts for Brandon Rumbaugh, a former Seton Hill University student who went off to Afghanistan and came back a changed man.

“Being able to come back here 10 years later and speak to the team and experience all this — it's an amazing feeling,” Rumbaugh said, standing halfway between the pitcher's mound and home plate.

Rumbaugh, 28, of Uniontown returned to Seton Hill on Friday to accept a $500 donation for the It's About the Warrior Foundation and to receive the baseball jersey he would have worn back in 2007.

The ceremony was held after the first game of a doubleheader against Clarion University. Seton Hill players wore camouflage jerseys for the school's Military Appreciation Day.

“I just felt like if anybody deserved to have his own jersey, he did,” said Griffins head coach Marc Marizzaldi.

An outfielder, Rumbaugh was on the Seton Hill baseball team for one semester before deciding to join the Marine Corps. He practiced with the team but never played a game, Marizzaldi said.

“He was a very hard type of player. Very athletic,” he said.

Rumbaugh ended up doing two tours in Afghan‑istan. In 2010, the corporal lost both legs in an IED explosion.

Today, he wears a prosthesis for his left leg below the knee. His right leg was amputated at the hip. He gets around mostly with crutches and the prosthesis, although he uses a wheelchair at home.

Rumbaugh's involvement with the It's About the Warrior Foundation began after he got out of the hospital, he said.

“They reached out to me and asked if I needed help,” he said. “I thought it was pretty awesome that they approached me instead of me asking for help.”

The Butler-based foundation was founded in 2012 and serves military veterans whose service began after 9/11, regardless of whether they did tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. The nonprofit provides financial, therapeutic and home improvement assistance to veterans from Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Ohio and Northern West Virginia who have been honorably discharged.

Rumbaugh serves on the board of directors and oversees the financial grant program, which helps qualifying veterans with things such as utilities, mortgage and car payments. Veterans can apply for as much as $1,000 in assistance a year, he said.

Rumbaugh also travels and does motivational speaking for sports teams, schools, nonprofits and corporations. He founded ACT Motivational Speaking two years ago and spoke to the Seton Hill baseball team last year.

“Ever since I left (in 2007), I always wanted to come back here on good terms,” he said at Friday's ceremony. “When I left, I left a lot of stuff behind, and I wasn't sure what to expect. I just knew that I wanted to go into the Marine Corps.”

For details about the It's About the Warrior Foundation, visit www.iatw.us. Rumbaugh's website is www.brandonrumbaugh.com.

Stephen Huba is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-1280, shuba@tribweb.com or via Twitter @shuba_trib.