Sacramento Coalition to End the War

NEWS ADVISORY
Friday, June 1, 2007
Contact: Cres Vellucci, Veterans for Peace, 916/996-9170

ATTN: NEWS DESK

Iraq vet continues quest to walk laps for all
U.S. troops killed in Iraq; He finishes CA total
of 362, and is getting help from others to finish

SACRAMENTO – A visibly exhausted veteran of the Iraq War moved into his 5th
straight day of circling the State Capitol here Friday to remember U.S.
troops killed in Iraq – a half-mile loop for each one – and to call for an
immediate end to the war.

Late Wednesday, he finished doing laps for all 362 California victims of
the war after three 24-hour days of making rounds without a night in bed.
He started his quest Monday at 8 a.m.

Thursday, the Sacramento area veteran – who has asked to remain anonymous
because he wants the focus on his fallen comrades not him – began walking
laps for all other U.S. troops killed in Iraq from the other 49 states.
That's another 3,100 names. As of Thursday night, the veteran had walked a
total of about 800 laps, including the 362 from California.

The Iraq veteran has also agreed to let other veterans, parents of troops
now in Iraq and others opposed to the war join him and take laps. Each
person walking a lap reads a card with personal information about the war
casualty, and then posts a yellow ribbon on a growing "Memorial Wall."

The veteran experienced exhaustion, blisters, extreme hip and back pain
that reduced his brisk strides to a painful shuffle, and is now allowing
others to join him so that all of the nearly 3,500 U.S. military personnel
will be remembered.

Hundreds of supporters, parents of Iraq vets, other veterans from other
wars, passers by and people who have just heard of the walk have joined him
in the quest. They are also walking for the tens of thousands of Iraqi
civilians killed by all sides during the war.

The walk will continue from dawn to dusk, or 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. 7 days a week.
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