CHAD is a CrossFit Hero workout written in honor of Navy SEAL Senior Chief Chad Wilkinson, who died by suicide on Oct. 29, 2018 as a result of several traumatic brain injuries, blast-wave injuries, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) stemming from many deployments across more than two decades of service. Chad is survived by his spouse, Sara, a former CrossFit Seminar Staff flowmaster, and children, Kinsley and Hudson; as well as countless other friends and family.
The CrossFit community joins together annually on Veteran’s Day in thousands of CrossFit affiliates and garage gyms around the world to tackle this workout in Chad’s memory, raising funds to support Veteran Mental Health Initiatives through The Step Up Foundation, an organization Sara founded in Chad’s honor to change the narrative concerning the number of veteran suicides by dramatically expanding awareness regarding the effects of blast wave injury, traumatic brain injuries, and post traumatic stress.