The Buddy Watch Walk is coming to Selma Wednesday morning to take the historical path from Selma to Montgomery and spread awareness of the need to guide veterans in the right direction and slim the number of veteran suicides.
The group will meet at the Edmund Pettus Bridge at 8:30 a.m. and are inviting local veterans and families to join the walk and send them off.Â
Founded Oct. 1, 2019 by John Ring, who served in the Georgia Army National Guard, the Buddy watch walk is a mission to bring together veterans of all ethnicities, with different backgrounds and struggles to a safe haven filled with understanding, conversation and resources and help with veterans’ adjustment to life out of the service.
“I will continue to invest my time into walking miles upon miles to bring awareness to veteran issues and illnesses,” Ring said.
The team walks countless miles through different states, along highways and roads to make a statement.Â
Jimmy Mathews, a retired Army vet who served 25 years, said, “On average there is 20 to 22 veteran suicides a day, and if what we are doing can save just one I know we are doing something right.”Â
Buddy Watch Walk knows that PTSD, MST, TBI, addiction and homelessness are all major issues that lead to veteran suicides, with that being their motivation, the team is literally walking the long road until they see improvement.
“Nobody left behind,” “Realize you are not alone,” “We need to make this a circle of connection for the people fighting,” are a few impactful things said by Paco Balthazar and Jason Hanner, Army and United States Navy veterans.Â
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Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
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