Vet Walking For Wounded Warrior Project
March 7, 2020 at 3:49 a.m.
Vet Walking For Wounded Warrior Project
By Amanda Bridgman-
Meadows, 62, who is originally from Tucumcari, N.M., served in the Air Force from 1975 to 1979 and was honorably discharged.
He and his wife, Virginia, got rid of their home, loaded into their van and headed to Bemidji, Minn., in March 2019.
“It’s one of the northern parts of the country, and I figured if I was gonna walk, I might as well do a good one,” Meadows said. He’s walking to Jacksonville, Fla. Meadows walks pulling his oxygen tank – he’s on oxygen 24 hours a day, he said, and his wife is important on helping him on his journey.
“She follows behind me, about roughly 100 feet, and we don’t get a motel every night. There’s no way we could afford that. So we sleep in our van sometimes, and it’s fine,” he said.
He and Virgina were resting in a motel north of Knox Friday due to the cold and rainy weather.
“I’ll be going through Warsaw, and we will be staying on Highway 30, then travel east into Fort Wayne and then I’m gonna turn south there at Fort Wayne, go through Indianapolis and take me more in the direction of Jacksonville,” Meadows said of his route.
He’s walked 17 miles in one day during his journey for the Wounded Warriors Project.
“The reason why I’m doing this is for the veterans,” Meadows said. “Being a veteran myself, I remember how the guys came home from Vietnam. And there’s been a huge improvement over the last 40 years, but we still got a long way to go. And even though it’s better, this is not the time to get complacent, so I’m doing this to raise awareness. The Wounded Warriors, after I got done researching them, I decided these are the guys who I want to do this for, because they’re the only organization out there that doesn’t only help the veteran but also the spouse and the caretakers.”
Meadows said he and his wife get by on their Social Security and that since they no longer have rent to pay, they do OK.
“This has been one of the greatest experience of our lives. Hundreds of people I’ve met along the way. You see so much diversity and hear so much about it. I’ll tell you what, either I’m nuts or everybody loves veterans,” he said. “They’ll pull over just to see if I’m OK. I don’t know how many selfies I’ve taken, and I’m talking from little 3-year-old kids to law enforcement. It’s a great feeling to know that.”
Meadows said while he doesn’t want to get political, he believes, “Our country’s already great, we just gotta slow down a little bit and just live. I’ve seen eagles follow me for miles. That’s things you would not see at 75 miles an hour.”
Meadows told a story about a little girl named Rachelle who came up to him and thanked him for his service, but then asked if she could have his hair. Meadows said he realized the child was wearing a cap and spoke to the child’s mother, who told Meadows the girl had cancer and didn’t have any hair. But the girl did talk about Locks of Love – the nonprofit organization that accepts donations of human hair to make wigs for children in need due to medical conditions.
“So when I get down to Jacksonville, she may not get my hair, but I’m gonna donate it in her name,” Meadows said. “I can’t describe all the positive things I’ve ran into. I’ve even thought about writing a book about it when I’m done with my journey.”
Meadows plans to be passing through Warsaw by Monday if not earlier.
Anyone who wants to donate to the Wounded Warriors project can do so online at bit.ly/2EdXW26, and all the money goes to Wounded Warriors. Those interested in following Meadows’ journey can check out the Facebook page called Road Walker Journey.
“What is so rewarding is you’ll remember the legacy and just how important our veterans are. We don’t have to wake up Sunday and worry too much about what church we’re going to because we get to choose our church,” Meadows said. “People hear that freedom isn’t free. It’s extremely expensive, and usually those who don’t get that or just don’t understand, those are the ones I?try to reach out to. There’s a lot to it, but it’s dang well worth it.”
Meadows, 62, who is originally from Tucumcari, N.M., served in the Air Force from 1975 to 1979 and was honorably discharged.
He and his wife, Virginia, got rid of their home, loaded into their van and headed to Bemidji, Minn., in March 2019.
“It’s one of the northern parts of the country, and I figured if I was gonna walk, I might as well do a good one,” Meadows said. He’s walking to Jacksonville, Fla. Meadows walks pulling his oxygen tank – he’s on oxygen 24 hours a day, he said, and his wife is important on helping him on his journey.
“She follows behind me, about roughly 100 feet, and we don’t get a motel every night. There’s no way we could afford that. So we sleep in our van sometimes, and it’s fine,” he said.
He and Virgina were resting in a motel north of Knox Friday due to the cold and rainy weather.
“I’ll be going through Warsaw, and we will be staying on Highway 30, then travel east into Fort Wayne and then I’m gonna turn south there at Fort Wayne, go through Indianapolis and take me more in the direction of Jacksonville,” Meadows said of his route.
He’s walked 17 miles in one day during his journey for the Wounded Warriors Project.
“The reason why I’m doing this is for the veterans,” Meadows said. “Being a veteran myself, I remember how the guys came home from Vietnam. And there’s been a huge improvement over the last 40 years, but we still got a long way to go. And even though it’s better, this is not the time to get complacent, so I’m doing this to raise awareness. The Wounded Warriors, after I got done researching them, I decided these are the guys who I want to do this for, because they’re the only organization out there that doesn’t only help the veteran but also the spouse and the caretakers.”
Meadows said he and his wife get by on their Social Security and that since they no longer have rent to pay, they do OK.
“This has been one of the greatest experience of our lives. Hundreds of people I’ve met along the way. You see so much diversity and hear so much about it. I’ll tell you what, either I’m nuts or everybody loves veterans,” he said. “They’ll pull over just to see if I’m OK. I don’t know how many selfies I’ve taken, and I’m talking from little 3-year-old kids to law enforcement. It’s a great feeling to know that.”
Meadows said while he doesn’t want to get political, he believes, “Our country’s already great, we just gotta slow down a little bit and just live. I’ve seen eagles follow me for miles. That’s things you would not see at 75 miles an hour.”
Meadows told a story about a little girl named Rachelle who came up to him and thanked him for his service, but then asked if she could have his hair. Meadows said he realized the child was wearing a cap and spoke to the child’s mother, who told Meadows the girl had cancer and didn’t have any hair. But the girl did talk about Locks of Love – the nonprofit organization that accepts donations of human hair to make wigs for children in need due to medical conditions.
“So when I get down to Jacksonville, she may not get my hair, but I’m gonna donate it in her name,” Meadows said. “I can’t describe all the positive things I’ve ran into. I’ve even thought about writing a book about it when I’m done with my journey.”
Meadows plans to be passing through Warsaw by Monday if not earlier.
Anyone who wants to donate to the Wounded Warriors project can do so online at bit.ly/2EdXW26, and all the money goes to Wounded Warriors. Those interested in following Meadows’ journey can check out the Facebook page called Road Walker Journey.
“What is so rewarding is you’ll remember the legacy and just how important our veterans are. We don’t have to wake up Sunday and worry too much about what church we’re going to because we get to choose our church,” Meadows said. “People hear that freedom isn’t free. It’s extremely expensive, and usually those who don’t get that or just don’t understand, those are the ones I?try to reach out to. There’s a lot to it, but it’s dang well worth it.”
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