Cardinals hero saves Pat Tillman’s locker from demolition

Pat Tillman was an Arizona hometown hero. Originally playing for Arizona State University, Tillman went on to become a starter for the Cardinals. Tillman made headlines when he ended his NFL career to become an Army Ranger, and he made them again when he was killed in action in 2004. Now that the team is renovating its training facility, they’re preserving Tillman’s locker to honor his memory. But it almost didn’t happen.

A renovation crew was hard at work in the Cardinals’ practice facility this week breaking down the wooden stalls that had been there since the 90s. Tillman’s stall would have been part of this process if it weren’t for a photo of the stalls being dismantled on the Arizona Cardinals blog, which caught the eye of Jim Omohundro, the Cardinals’ broadcast and new media manager. Omohundro was away from the facility at the time, but he rushed back to save the stall from being turned into scrap wood.

“I was like, ‘Whoa, whoa, whoa. Can we carefully cut this one out and set it aside?’ I explained it was Pat Tillman’s locker,” he said.

The preserved stall will likely be on display in the lobby of the newly renovated facility. Thanks to Omohundro’s quick thinking, the Cardinals can continue to pay tribute to their fallen hero for years to come.

(via the Cardinals’ blog)