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Warrior Hikers David & Jordan and with Leo from the local VFW.
Members of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 277 in Mammoth have been helping fellow veterans who are “walking off the war” along the Arizona Trail. Warrior Expeditions is a non-profit organization that allows veterans to transition from their military service by using the therapeutic effects of long distance hiking. They provide necessary equipment and supplies for a long distance hike. They then coordinate community support from veteran and community organizations to provide lodging, food and transportation along the route.
Two Iraq War veterans started walking the Arizona Trail on March 20. They started down by the Mexican border and have reached the 200-mile mark. The veterans are Jordan Burke and David Kurneta. David was in the Navy and Jordan is an Army vet. They stopped along the trail in Oracle to resupply and rest up for a day. On Saturday, April 9, the Mammoth VFW picked them up at the Arizona Trailhead near the American Flag Ranch off of Mt. Lemmon Road.
The VFW set them up with a motel room at the San Manuel Lodge and treated them to dinner at La Casita in Mammoth. The San Manuel Lodge provided the room at no cost to the Warrior Hikers. The VFW also took them shopping to resupply for the next part of their journey. They will be walking the entire Arizona Trail which will end in Utah, an 800-mile hike.
David and Jordan said that the hike so far “has been fantastic.” They are “meeting great people along the way.”
They added, “It restores our faith in other people. It has been awesome!”
The VFW would like to thank the San Manuel Lodge, La Casita, San Manuel Elks Lodge, Norma Martinez, the San Manuel Miner and all the veterans that made this possible.
If you are interested in helping Warrior Expeditions or would like to learn more about them, visit their website www.warriorexpeditions.org.
John Hernandez lives in Oracle. He is retired and enjoys writing and traveling. He is active in the Oracle Historical Society. He covers numerous public events, researches historical features and writes business/artist profiles.
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