A Marine veteran who grew up in Kentucky is walking hundreds of miles in an effort to help prevent veteran suicides. His motivation is deeply personal.
John Preston has had a lot of missions in his life.
"I'm a Marine combat veteran. I'm a firefighter, currently with the city of Palo Alto out in California," he said.
Preston grew up in Warsaw, Kentucky. Being a Marine was a family tradition. Preston's father was in the Marines. So was his older brother, Michael.
"I grew up wanting to be like him, wishing I could be him in every way. I'm a first responder because of him. I listened to his words as if it was the greatest wisdom ever given," Preston said.
Like a lot of veterans, Preston's time in Iraq really affected him.
"Initially, I went into alcohol and, basically, was very self-destructive," Preston said. "I've had those struggles and I had to learn to move forward,"
Preston has dedicated himself to trying to help other veterans with PTSD through music, hoping to prevent suicides. A 2020 Veterans Affairs study found the suicide rate among veterans was nearly double that of civilians.
In an effort to draw attention to those suicides and encourage people to act to stop them, Preston, his wife Cory Preston, and his childhood friend Izzak Chandler found themselves on a new mission along US 25 in Rockcastle County Tuesday. They're raising money for veteran and first responder non-profits by walking from the Marine Corps basic training camp at Parris Island in South Carolina, through Warsaw, and on to Cincinnati.
"We want to encourage others to push through and when you can't, rely on your team. Rely on your team of people around you," Preston said, as he and the rest of the group walked along the side of the highway, an American flag resting on his shoulder.
In 2016, Preston lost one of the most important members of his own team.
"Preparing to go on stage to play a show about post-traumatic stress and veteran suicide, and I get a phone call from my family that my older brother had taken his own life. Everything in my life altered because, at that point, I lost my hero," Preston said.
Preston hopes the awareness he raises through the walk can inspire people to offer help, or ask for it if they need to.
"I can't go back and fix that. I can't go back and fix my family. Maybe I can stop someone else from doing it. Maybe we can stop someone else from doing it," he said.
Each day on the road is tough.
"Once you break that 18-mile plane, your body just doesn't want it, you know?" Preston said.
There's time to reflect.
"I talk to my brother, and tell him I wish he was still here," he said.
They also have the opportunity to connect. As the group walks along the road, drivers occasionally stop to express their appreciation and make donations.
"There's a lot of love, man. There's so much love out here," Preston said.
A production crew is following the group. They hope to find a distributor for a documentary, aiming to get more people talking about ways to prevent veteran and first responder suicides. You can watch the team's progress and find out more about their mission at www.22andyou.net/.
On December 12, John and his crew plan to arrive at Paycor Stadium after 704 miles. John hopes it can be the end of a long, dark chapter.
"The hardest thing of all this is I haven't gone through it yet, right? I've never had my foot off the gas since I lost my brother. My hope is that, when this is done, I can actually just put the pack down, not just the hiking, maybe take a break for a little while, love my family, be with my wife and my children, and have a normal life for a little bit."
Preston hopes that path to healing, his mission to prevent tragedies like this, is on this same long road to Cincinnati.
