With more than 2.5 million veterans returning home from Iraq and Afghanistan since 2001, and the Department of Veteran Affairs reporting that 20 percent of these veterans suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, soldiers may not always have the opportunity to transition from their experiences.
Sean Gobin gained clarity and support that he wanted to extend to veterans across the country after hiking all 2,185 miles of the Appalachian Trail when he returned home from deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan in 2012, leading him to establish Warrior Expeditions. Gobin took the therapeutic effects he experienced firsthand on his thru-hike of the AT, to develop a network of experiences across the country to support combat veterans’ transition from their military service back into civilian life.
Each year, the Warrior Hikers conquering the Appalachian Trail are welcomed to Franklin by the American Legion Post 108 and VFW Post 7739. Gobin organizes weekly trail town stops throughout the more than 2,000 miles of the AT, where locals give the hikers a hot meal and a chance to take a shower and sleep in a real bed.
Warrior Expeditions provides veterans around the country the chance to disconnect from the stress of everyday life and to immerse themselves in nature and to “walk off the war.”
Gobin’s decision to hike the trail wasn’t the first time a veteran found solace on the trail. Earl Shaffer, who in 1948, told a friend he was going to “walk off the war” after World War II, finished the hike four months later to become the first person to hike the entire length of the AT from Georgia to Maine. Since its inception, Warrior Expeditions has grown to include the Warrior Hike which follows trails all over the United States, the Warrior Bike, and Warrior Paddle programs, all geared toward helping combat veterans return home.
The 2021 class of Warrior Hikers left Springer Mountain last week and are making their way toward Franklin. The group includes nine veterans, hailing from eight different states, who have served in Kuwait, Djibouti, Saudia Arabia, Bostania, Syria, the Persian Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan and represent the Army, Air Force, and the Marines. This year’s class of veterans features two North Carolina residents, Michael Coleman from Fayetteville and Donald Downey from Jacksonville, NC.
Appalachian Trail Veterans
Name: Elizabeth Barlow
Hometown: Whiteland, IN
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Journalist
Service: 2012-2020
Deployments: Kuwait, Syria, Iraq
Name: Benjamin Blume
Hometown: Houston, TX
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Infantryman
Service: 2010-2016
Deployments: Afghanistan
Name: Michael Coleman
Hometown: Fayetteville, NC
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Chaplain
Service: 2011-2019
Deployments: Afghanistan, Iraq
Name: Donald Downey
Hometown: Jacksonville, NC
Branch: United States Marine Corps
MOS: Light Armored Vehicle Marine
Service: 1984-2017
Deployments: Saudi Arabia, Iraq
Name: Edgar Marquis
Hometown: Hudson, FL
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Information Services Technician
Service: 1978-2015
Deployments: Saudi Arabia, Bosnia, Iraq, Afghanistan
Name: Amity Quinones
Hometown: Tampa, FL
Branch: United States Air Force
MOS: Intelligence Analyst
Service: 2003-2020
Deployments: Djibouti, Iraq, Afghanistan
Name: Emerald Ralston
Hometown: Waterloo, IA
Branch: United States Air Force
MOS: Public Affairs
Service: 2005-2010
Deployments: Afghanistan
Name: John Reardon
Hometown: Youngstown, OH
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Infantryman
Service: 2013-2019
Deployments: Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria
Name: Shannon Shaver
Hometown: Mound, MN
Branch: United States Army
MOS: Financial Management Technician
Service: 2000-2009
Deployments: Bosnia, Iraq
Be First to Comment