Walking Montana Marine reaches Bonners Ferry
|
|
April 19, 2013 |
 |
|
Lane Hittle Photo |
|
CJ Smith and
Savannah Mendenhall stopped on Peterson Hill
this afternoon and met "Montana Honor
Guard" Chuck Lewis, who is on a 3,300
mile walk across the United States to
remind people of the cost of freedom. |
|
Starting this morning, Facebook lit up with
messages of people seeing a tall man wearing a
red U.S. Marine Corps sweatshirt and pushing a
cart bedecked with an assortment of flags and a
banner on front, "Walking for the Fallen."
"There is a gentleman walking towards Bonners
Ferry, from the south," Cynthia Stovall-Sanders
wrote this afternoon. "He is Walking for the
Fallen. We passed him this morning on our way to
Sandpoint and again on way back. He was at mile
marker 502 around three p.m. I'm not sure of his
story, or who he is. How about a Bonners Ferry
welcome?"
 He
is former Marine Sergeant Chuck Lewis, Ronan,
Montana, and he's on a trek that started in
Everett, Washington, and won't end until he's
walked 3,300 miles to Washington, D.C., making
stops along the way giving presentations to remind Americans of the high cost of
freedom, and raising $50,000 to
benefit a number of organizations helping our
wounded and disabled military veterans.
Chuck served as an active duty Marine for four
years in the early 1970s and in the U.S. Navy
Reserve through most of the 1980s. After earning
a degree in electronics technology, he worked
for the Department of Defense at China Lake,
California, for 27 years, assisting in the
research and development of military weapons
systems and and remote control devices.
He and his wife, Linda, raised six children
while in California before he retired in 2001
and they and their youngest daughter, Michelle,
moved to Ronan.
It was there, he writes, that he attended a
military funeral for an Army friend, where the
military honors bestowed stirred him. He
joined the Veteran's Honor Guard of Polson,
Montana, where, at age 55, he was its youngest
member. He actively went to work recruiting
other military veterans and educating the
public, and led him to adopt the moniker,
"Montana Honor Guard."
All this led to the Walking for the Fallen ~ USA
project, and he began his epic journey March 30.
He arrived in Bonners Ferry a little before 5
p.m. today.
"It continues to be an honor to serve our
country," he says of his long walk. " "I hope
people will find it in their hearts to support
this effort. Your assistance will literally go a
long way - one step at a time."
Those who'd like to learn more, or contribute to
Walking for the Fallen USA can visit his
website,
http://www.walkingforthefallen.com. |
|
Questions or comments about this
letter?
Click here to e-mail! |
|
|
|
|
