VetWalking Week 29

Walk Across America

Our journey has come to an end but the cause walks on. This adventure has generated $1000′s in pledges and now its time to turn them into donations. We will contact everyone we can by E-mail to thank them for their support. Eight states, hundreds of towns, thousands of people and 2534 miles and it seems like yesterday when we started our walk. We could not of done this alone and thank you all for making this possible. Check back because the Blog will walk on.

Day 197
 
Woke up early even though we have a day off. Less than a week and we will complete the walk across America. The time off is needed but all the things we have to do keeps us busy. Today we have a lot of interviews with the press and we will visit some VFW`S and American Legions. JC will guide us around the San Diego area. Its nice to have someone who knows the area . The traffic here gets pretty thick at times and you end up doing a lot of u-turns. Smile. After all the interviews I dropped JC off and headed over to Conor`s house to eat supper with them. His wife Claire is a good cook and there kids are fun to be around. Kegan and Ceanna are so polite and I brought each one of them a book. I will read them a bed time story tonight.  After reading them a story and getting some hugs and kisses it was time to go crash. Headed over to JC`S and crashed in the pace car. Its all good.

Day198
 
Woke up ready to head to the airport. Will pick up Carol today. Met a lot of vets at the airport. After leaving the airport we headed over to meet some Navy soldiers who are on active duty. They bought us lunch and all of them signed the car. Everywhere we went today we ran into military troops and Veterans. San Diego has  many military people in its communities and many bases. The weather here is fantastic. The DAV in California arranged for us a room while we are here. We will stay at the Holiday Inn next to the Marine base. Relaxation. Kicked back and put the feet up. Off to la la land. Its all good.

Day 199
 
Woke up with a visit to the VA Medical Center in San Diego. Upon arriving at the hospital we were greeted by many Veterans who were there to see and sign the pace car. We were given an escort to tour the hospital and talk to the patients. While we were there we were told that the last Medal of Honor winner from WW2 had passed away the night before. Another hero who dedicated so much of his life for our country. You will never be forgotten sir. Our tour of the hospital was so inspiring and was the reason we walked across America. The many disabled vets we met today not only were proud to serve but all said they would do it again. It was a very humbling experience. After the visit we hung around outside talking to vets and family members about there health care and ways we could improve to help them build better lives. After leaving the hospital we would visit a couple of Veterans organizations to meet more Veterans and troops who are serving now. At least the media is not following us today. Back to the room to freshen up for supper with Conor and Claire. She made a lasagna and we pigged out. Gaining weight for sure. Off to the hotel to crash. We will resume our walk tomorrow. Its all good. Thanks Claire and Conor. Your family rocks.

Day 200
 
Up early eager to start our last three days of walking. Will be walking into Poway,Ca. today. As we walked today many horns blew and people waved in support of the cause we walk for. We were humbled by the outpouring of support. We would like to thank JC Playford for walking with us since getting to California and for helping us get the media to support our cause. His help will always be remembered and honored. Had to slow him down at times because he could walk pretty fast and at this point in the walk I had slowed down. Smile!!  Finally started down the hill into Poway. What beautiful weather here and the scenery is what dreams are made of. As we walked the memories of the many miles were relived in my mind. Two more days and a little over 20 miles left as we finished our walk today. We headed over to the Hotel to clean up and relax. Ordered a Pizza and watched TV until falling asleep. The end is nearing. OOH RAH. ITS ALL GOOD

Day 201
 
Up early walking. We will be walking thru Poway and over to Waxie Way Rd. As we walked today we passed by the Marine Air Station at Miramar. JC walked and filmed most of the day. Perfect weather all day. Not much traffic on our route today but those who passed honked or waved. A lot of Vets stopped and signed the pace car. It was cool having Veterans and active duty soldiers signing the car together. The comradery was visible with each meeting. As we walked I thought about all the miles left behind and the few we had left. Walked fast today and with each step I thought about all the memories and friends we have made across America. After finishing our walk today we headed to the Grand Colonial Hotel in La Jolla, Ca. They donated us a room for the night. First Class Hotel and the staff were very professional. Laying on the bed looking out over the ocean was awesome. The sea breeze was so refreshing. Thanks so very much for allowing us the honor to stay at your hotel. After cleaning up we headed over to Paul Rising`s house to eat dinner with him and his family. The dinner was fabulous and I gorged again. We took pics afterwords and Paul signed the car. Headed back to the room and crashed out. One more day and we will be joined by Paul and his Cub Scouts. OOH RAH. ITS ALL GOOD.

Day 202
 
Couldn’t sleep last night. Really anxious to end the walk today. It’s been a long road and we have faced many challenges along the way. Our challenges only made us realize the everyday challenges faced by our disabled vets. We feel like we have made a difference but realize it takes all of us working together to make a change. As a team we can help our disabled build better lives and get honorable care when needed. A lot of horns honking today as we walk towards Balboa Park. Another beautiful day here. So many things going on this Memorial Day to honor those who honored us with their service. We did numerous interviews with the press as we walked today. At one point today our walk dead ended into a fence. Called Jack to figure it out. First time on our walk Google map failed us. Oh well. Jack told me a new route and we headed that way. Wasn’t long and we entered the park. We met Conor and his friends and they started walking with us. A little further into the park we met Paul Rising and his cub scout troop. Not much farther and we will achieve our goal of walking across America. As the memorial came into sight we felt so very proud of each and every person that helped us across America. So many places and faces raced through our mind. As we reached the Memorial I could only kneel down and kiss the ground giving thanks to God and all of those who helped us get here. It was all good. After taking pictures with everyone Channel 7 did an interview with us and many Veterans came by to sign the car and congratulate us. Thanks everyone for being there today. It meant a lot to us. A special thanks to JC Playford for all his time and help while we were in California. Semper Fi

VetWalking 2010

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