PC Welcomes Over 400 Community Members at 21st Annual Run for Peace

On Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, over 400 Penn Charter community members, OPCs, students, parents and caregivers, faculty, staff and friends, came together for the 21^st annual Run for Peace.

The Run for Peace, a 5K run and one-mile family fun walk, was created to honor the lives of two PC alumni, Peter K. Ortale OPC '83 and Kenny Caldwell OPC '89, who died on Sept. 11, 2001. This true community event and the unofficial start to the school year exemplifies Penn Charter’s commitment to peace and building a community of belonging for all. All proceeds from the Run for Peace benefit the Peter K. Ortale and Kenny Caldwell scholarship funds, creating opportunities for Penn Charter students in honor of their legacy.

Director of development Chris Rahill OPC ’99 shared, “The Run for Peace is a true reflection of Penn Charter. It brings together OPCs, family, friends and students to honor the legacy of Peter and Kenny and what they stood for at Penn Charter and beyond. They were men of extraordinary character who brought out the best in others. PC is, and always will be, a community that shows up for one another and to have 400+ people come out on a yearly basis speaks to the strength of our school.”

The Run for Peace was particularly special this year—in addition to marking the 25th anniversary of 9/11, the peace testimony takes center stage for the school, as Penn Charter has chosen to focus on "Peace Through Action" as the theme for the 2026-2027 school year.

The Caldwell and Ortale families were in attendance at the event and shared some meaningful messages with attendees—especially PC students. Elsie Goss-Caldwell, mother of Kenny Caldwell, said, "Thank you so much for being here. If my Kenny was here he would be so happy. He loved this school so much and had a great time here ... Whatever it is that you do, [Kenny] would tell you to be true to yourself and be kind to people." 

Cathy Ortale-Grimes, sister of Peter Ortale, encouraged attendees to not simply honor the past, believing that Peter would want us to make the most of the time we have now. "Peter would not want us to look at the past. He would want us to think to look more at the present, and what we are doing with the time we have. The life we have. To be here," she shared. "Do things that matter to you. Don’t hold back—that was his philosophy—don’t wait. I think Peter would want to be remembered not for the way his life ended but for the way he lived his life. Thank you for continuing to remember him with us."

Thank you to all who were able to join us on Sept. 19 as we honored Kenny and Peter and raised funds that will support opportunities for PC students for decades to come!

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