Two military veterans will cycle more than 200 miles from Albany County to Suffolk County in October during a continuous 22-hour ride intended to raise awareness of peer support for veterans, service members, military families and caregivers.
The inaugural Tour de Valor: One Million Voices is scheduled to begin at noon Friday, Oct. 23, at the Albany County Veterans Service Bureau and conclude Saturday morning at the PFC Joseph P. Dwyer Memorial in Rocky Point. Organizers say the route will cross 11 New York counties.
Two veterans will complete the overnight ride
Gavin T. Walters Sr., a disabled U.S. Air Force veteran and executive director of the Dwyer Coalition for Military Veterans & Families, will ride with Jason Puckett. Puckett served 22 years in the military, including four years as a Navy submariner and 18 years with the New York Air National Guard at Stewart Air National Guard Base in Newburgh.
The ride will start at the Albany County Veterans Service Bureau at 420 Western Ave. in Albany. Its destination is the PFC Joseph P. Dwyer Memorial at Rocky Point Veterans Memorial Square on Long Island.
Organizers describe the route as a symbolic version of the challenges faced by members of the military-connected community. The 22 hours without sleep are intended to represent the physical and emotional exhaustion that can accompany mental-health and physical struggles, while the distance reflects the longer path through those challenges.
Planned stops at fire departments will represent community support, and law enforcement escorts will represent people and organizations that guide and protect those facing difficult circumstances. The two riders are meant to demonstrate the camaraderie and peer support available when veterans connect with others who have had similar experiences.
Walters said the ride is meant to remind military-connected New Yorkers that they do not have to face those challenges alone. He said the riders will also recognize communities, first responders and supporters who assist veterans and their families.
Initiative highlights the broader military community
The Dwyer Coalition said Tour de Valor is also intended to draw attention to service and sacrifice that may be overlooked. That includes National Guard members, reservists, military families, caregivers and others who are not always reflected in commonly cited veteran statistics.
The New York State Department of Veterans' Services is supporting the initiative and helping publicize its focus on connection, peer support and hope. Commissioner Viviana M. DeCohen said the department's partnership with the Dwyer Coalition is part of a broader effort to make peer-to-peer help available to veterans across the state.
The department said the Joseph P. Dwyer Peer Support Program has expanded statewide. The program connects veterans with other veterans through confidential, nonclinical support.
The Dwyer Coalition works with local programs and other organizations on veteran suicide prevention, mental health, substance-use concerns and the well-being of military-connected communities. Its work includes statewide coordination, shared resources, technology and advocacy for the peer-support network.
Ride honors an Army combat medic
The peer-support program and the ride's destination honor Army Pfc. Joseph P. Dwyer, a combat medic from Long Island who served in Iraq. He became widely known after a 2003 photograph showed him carrying an injured Iraqi child to safety.
After returning home, Dwyer struggled with post-traumatic stress and a traumatic brain injury. He died in 2008, and the veterans peer-support program was later created in his memory.
More information about the ride is available through the Dwyer Coalition's Tour de Valor page. Questions can be sent to info@dcmvf.org.
Veterans, service members and military families seeking benefits or support can contact the state Department of Veterans' Services at 888-838-7697 to arrange an in-person or virtual meeting with an accredited veterans benefits adviser.
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