thedrifter
10-18-06, 07:45 AM
Putting a bare foot forward for vets
A man hikes the Appalachian Trail in an effort to ensure counseling
BY BOB STUART
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
On the Internet Zaleski's travels: www.thelongwalkhome.org
WAYNESBORO Ron Zaleski wants the federal government to make sure all veterans coming home from war get mandatory counseling before returning to civilian life.
And to make his point, the 55-year-old Vietnam War veteran is hiking the Appalachian Trail barefoot to raise public awareness about veterans and their struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder. Zaleski said he thinks post-combat counseling should be intense and mandatory.
"I say make counseling mandatory for two weeks, 12 hours a day," he said during a recent stop in Afton.
Zaleski said the greatest focus should be on young vets, because longtime PTSD sufferers are more difficult to help.
"The guys who have it and are self-medicating are harder to turn around," he said. "A guy who is coming back will have a chance."
Zaleski, a retired health-club owner from Flanders, N.Y., has been hiking the Appalachian Trail south since Memorial Day and hopes to make it to the finish in Springer Mountain, Ga., before year's end.
He spent two years in the Marine Corps in the early 1970s, working at Norfolk Naval Weapons Station and Camp Pendleton, Calif. Zaleski said his aversion to wearing shoes began after he left the Marines. Going barefoot started as a protest against the Vietnam War, although for 33 years he didn't make his explanation public, he said.
But recently, when a little boy asked him why he was barefoot, he told him the reason. "I'd almost forgotten why I was doing it," Zaleski said.
Now, Zaleski believes he must do something to help his fellow veterans.
"I sat on my hands for 33 years and did nothing for anybody," he said. "If I don't do something, shame on me."
Talking to veterans and their families has had an effect on Zaleski, he said. "When I see wives who say their husband is not the same, and when I talk to a father who has lost his son to suicide, I am humbled."
Last month, Zaleski communicated his hope for more veterans counseling to Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., a former military psychiatrist. McDermott and former Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., met for a Washington briefing with Zaleski.
McDermott's communications director, Mike DeCesare, said the case must be made about PTSD and veterans to "soldiers, families and loved ones, so they understand and embrace the notion that this is as debilitating as any physical wound."
DeCesare said a comprehensive approach is needed to deal with the issue.
"There is no simple solution," he said. "We need to lay out the magnitude of the problem."
Zaleski said the discomfort of bone bruises and other foot injuries he has experienced on the Appalachian Trail is minor compared with the plight of American veterans.
"The most important thing is that I bring this issue to the public's attention," he said. "It's not about me, it's about veterans."
Bob Stuart is a staff writer at The News Virginian in Waynesboro.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ellie
A man hikes the Appalachian Trail in an effort to ensure counseling
BY BOB STUART
MEDIA GENERAL NEWS SERVICE
Wednesday, October 18, 2006
On the Internet Zaleski's travels: www.thelongwalkhome.org
WAYNESBORO Ron Zaleski wants the federal government to make sure all veterans coming home from war get mandatory counseling before returning to civilian life.
And to make his point, the 55-year-old Vietnam War veteran is hiking the Appalachian Trail barefoot to raise public awareness about veterans and their struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder. Zaleski said he thinks post-combat counseling should be intense and mandatory.
"I say make counseling mandatory for two weeks, 12 hours a day," he said during a recent stop in Afton.
Zaleski said the greatest focus should be on young vets, because longtime PTSD sufferers are more difficult to help.
"The guys who have it and are self-medicating are harder to turn around," he said. "A guy who is coming back will have a chance."
Zaleski, a retired health-club owner from Flanders, N.Y., has been hiking the Appalachian Trail south since Memorial Day and hopes to make it to the finish in Springer Mountain, Ga., before year's end.
He spent two years in the Marine Corps in the early 1970s, working at Norfolk Naval Weapons Station and Camp Pendleton, Calif. Zaleski said his aversion to wearing shoes began after he left the Marines. Going barefoot started as a protest against the Vietnam War, although for 33 years he didn't make his explanation public, he said.
But recently, when a little boy asked him why he was barefoot, he told him the reason. "I'd almost forgotten why I was doing it," Zaleski said.
Now, Zaleski believes he must do something to help his fellow veterans.
"I sat on my hands for 33 years and did nothing for anybody," he said. "If I don't do something, shame on me."
Talking to veterans and their families has had an effect on Zaleski, he said. "When I see wives who say their husband is not the same, and when I talk to a father who has lost his son to suicide, I am humbled."
Last month, Zaleski communicated his hope for more veterans counseling to Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., a former military psychiatrist. McDermott and former Sen. Max Cleland, D-Ga., met for a Washington briefing with Zaleski.
McDermott's communications director, Mike DeCesare, said the case must be made about PTSD and veterans to "soldiers, families and loved ones, so they understand and embrace the notion that this is as debilitating as any physical wound."
DeCesare said a comprehensive approach is needed to deal with the issue.
"There is no simple solution," he said. "We need to lay out the magnitude of the problem."
Zaleski said the discomfort of bone bruises and other foot injuries he has experienced on the Appalachian Trail is minor compared with the plight of American veterans.
"The most important thing is that I bring this issue to the public's attention," he said. "It's not about me, it's about veterans."
Bob Stuart is a staff writer at The News Virginian in Waynesboro.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Ellie