Max Rohn
Max Rohn always knew he wanted to join the military. He saw it as an opportunity to travel and wanted to follow the legacy of his grandfather who served during World War II. Being a lifeguard during high school, Max excelled at administering first aid, and decided to enlist as a corpsman in the Navy.
On May 2, 2009, during his first combat deployment, Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class Rohn was serving with the 2nd Marine Headquarters Group in Fallujah, Iraq, when his vehicle was struck by an RKG-3 grenade. HM3 Rohn sustained severe damage to both his legs, his right arm, and loss consciousness due to a traumatic brain injury in the blast. Max was transported to Walter Reed Military Medical Center to undergo 10 surgeries to try and save his right leg. After two and a half years of limb salvage, Max made the difficult decision to have doctors amputate his right leg in August of 2011 and he retired from the US Navy in March 2013. Max is also a Purple Heart Recipient.
In the years since his injury, Max has accomplished many incredible things. He received his bachelor’s degree in international politics from Penn State University and spent time in California training in track and field at the Olympic Training Center. There, he also met his amazing wife, Tori and they moved to California in 2023.
Max has since participated in the Invictus Games, Warrior Games, and the Parapan American Games and is training to make the USA Track & Field Team for LA28 in discus.
Most of Max’s hobbies and activities center around his love of adaptive sports and through a friend, Paralympian Justin Phongsavanh, he was introduced to Angel City Sports. He has been attending Angel City Games since 2019 as an athlete, but has risen as a leader and coach to the next generation of adaptive and Paralympic athletes by volunteering at Angel City Premier events like Youth Weekend, Angel City Games, and Courage Weekend.
“Angel City Sports is the premier organization in the country for adaptive sports. The effort made by Angel City Sports is the best I have been a part of to integrate the civilian, military, and first responder disabled community to participate in sports. We have many wounded warriors and injured first responders that are seeking a new purpose in life. ACS gives us a path forward on our new journey of recovery. Our commonality of being a patient unites us on our path to recovery by participating in sports.”
Max’s story is one of courage and perseverance. He embodies the unwavering spirit of a warrior who continues to lead by example and endlessly serves others as described above and through his work as a Board member at America’s VetDogs, a Warfighter Sports Ambassador with Move United and a member of Team Semper Fi.