Veteran hikes with names of veterans who took their lives
By Alana Cerrone
@Alana_Cerrone
The latest data shows that 22 veterans commit suicide every day.
Army Sgt. George Eshelman was almost one of them.
That’s what inspired him to turn around and get help for those who may be headed down a similar path.
He served four years on the front lines at Desert Storm but he’s now serving others by putting in the miles to raise awareness for veterans with PTSD.
"They have a mission…when they get out and they don’t have that they search for it – they can’t find it they’re turned away, turned down, they end up losing hope…"
He’s speaking from experience.
"I was gonna take my life on the southbound trip and realized I’ve got an opportunity to fix this problem."
Last week he hiked the Appalachian Trail. Now, he’s on a 1300-mile mission from Maine all the way to Georgia – with him, hundreds of names of soldiers who have taken their lives…given to him by families who want him to take their loved one along on his journey.
"We have over 1244 names…we have companies sponsoring 100 names at a time…that pays for the framing and mailing of these names back to the families."
He says he and his foundation, Unified Warrior Foundation, are focused on honoring those who have died, but also working towards a solution.
He says the millions of vets who are alive today aren’t getting the support and help they need before it’s too late.
"You’ve got to address the premise of the problem…no matter what a veteran takes his life for, they can always trace that back to PTSD, the separation from that family they had in service."
© WLNE-TV 2016
