Vet found local area uplifting in his walk across America
Carlisle, Pennsylvania resident Kenny Mintz found his walk across Guernsey County last week to be positive and uplifting.
Mintz, an Army veteran, left Washington DC April 1 to start his seven-month, 3,000 mile journey he named Kenny Walks Ac America. His mission is to raise money and awareness for pancreatic cancer and veterans.
Mintz arrived in Guernsey County after traveling through Barnesville. His route took him from Putney Ridge Road, through Lore City, onto the Great Guernsey Trail and into Dogtown/Buckeye Ville where he stopped at Fran's Bar.
"Everybody was real friendly and struck up a conversation. It was like everybody knows everybody," Mintz said. "You meet like one or two people and they share your information with other people and they start responding like, 'oh look that's my farm that you took a picture.'"
Mintz was recounting a story about a man on a four-wheeler herding cattle when a patron told him that was her ex-husband.
"I was like this is amazing. It's connecting the dots and that's what's fun about doing this walk," Mintz said. "I want to connect with people, I want to meet people. I want to see America. This is the country I served for 34 years and this is what I was fighting for and I want to see what it's all about."
Mintz said he was not disappointed by Guernsey County and he loved the beautiful countryside and friendly people.
"It was friendly. It was beautiful and the weather was good. I have been really impressed with Ohio so far. I have never spent much time in Ohio and it's been fantastic.
"I stopped at that little bar and they treated me like I was like a celebrity or something," Mintz said. "We were taking pictures and laughing and talking and it felt good. It really made me feel good about our country."
Mintz's motivation for the journey started with his mother, who passed in 2020 after a five-year battle with pancreatic cancer.
He recalled how brave she was to take him at the age of 4 to start over in Washington DC after separating from his father.
She then decided to move out to California, where she started a successful business.
According to Mintz, his mother had a fantasy about California being the promised land.
"I was watching my mom fight cancer and just said I would really like to walk across America after I retire from the Army."
Mintz served one tour in Iraq and three in Afghanistan. He said he has seen his share of untimely deaths and decided life is for living now because you never know when something might happen.
Mintz is promoting and raising money for three charities on his journey across America; the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, which his mom asked him to do before her death, Johnny Mac Soldiers Fund, which provides scholarships to children of fallen soldiers, and Independence Fund, an organization to reunite units that served together in combat.
Mintz is encouraging the people to follow his journey at Kennywalksacrossamerica.com and to make donations to the charities.
He expects to arrive in Chillicothe today or Thursday. After that he will move on to Cincinnati, Louisville, Kentucky and St. Louis Missouri.
Mintz said most of the time he usually walks by himself but he would be open to local people joining him as he passes through their area so they can share stories of the area with him. His journey will end sometime in October at Swami's Beach in Encinitas, California.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Jeffersonian: Vet found local area uplifting in his walk across America
