- April 25, 2024
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A ‘March to Remember’ is planned for Sept. 11 on Granada Boulevard.
Joe Barker, of Ormond Beach, knows what it’s like for a returning veteran. A 12-year Army man, he served two tours in Iraq.
When people get out of the service, they miss the brotherhood and the camaraderie, he said. That’s why he’s a member and supporter of Team RWB, a national organization with a local chapter.
“It provides fellowship,” he said.
Barker is a medic who served seven years in active duty, and now is in the reserves. He enjoys the walks, runs, yoga, bike rides and social events held by Team RWB.
“The exercise is awesome,” he said. “There’s something going on all the time. It’s really special times.”
The group is open to everyone, said Outreach Director Vince Faulkner, of Ormond Beach. The Daytona Beach chapter has 730 members and 400 are veterans.
He’s hoping to get a lot of people, including nonmembers, to join the group for a “March to Remember” on Sept. 11. It starts at 6 p.m. at Dunn’s Attic and Auction House, 136 W. Granada Blvd.
“Wes Dunn is a big supporter,” Faulkner said.
Faulkner said participants are encouraged to bring a flag. They will walk east along the boulevard and then go over the Granada Bridge and back, traveling underneath each end so they don’t have to cross traffic.
“I’d love to have 40 people walking across the bridge with flags,” he said.
The walk will kick off a 60-day event by the national organization of Team RWB. Members are going to carry a flag from California to Washington, D.C.
The national organization was started in 2010 by a veteran of Afghanistan named Mike Irwin. Faulkner said one of the reasons Irwin started the organization was to help returning vets who suffered from PTSD.
The Veterans Administration encourages veterans to get involved socially and be physically active, to avoid the necessity for medicine and psychological care, he said.
Faulkner, who served in the Navy from 1980 to 1985, agrees with Barker on the importance of having a social outlet.
“They miss the squad lifestyle,” he said. “Now they are by themselves. We try to enrich the lives of vets by reconnecting them with the community.”
They make arrangements so that anyone can take part. For example, they have a walk/run, where the event is measured in time, not distance. The walkers and runners all travel at their own speed for 15 minutes, and then return. That way, they all end the event at the same time.
David Crockett, of Daytona Beach, served in Korea in 1968 and 1969. He said he’s enjoyed making new friends, and now that he is starting to have physical challenges, has found it a good place to confer with others about resources that are available.
But he said they don’t usually talk about the military.
“It’s a fun group of people,” he said.
Faulkner said one Vietnam War veteran asked him where he was 40 years ago. He said if Team RWB existed back then, he wouldn’t have gotten into so much trouble.
There are now 100 chapters in Team RWB, including the Daytona Beach chapter, which started two and a half years ago. There is a “community” in each chapter, and Ormond Beach is a community. Admission and fees for the veterans are paid by the national organization, which has several sponsors. Nonveterans normally receive discounts.
