Veteran Josh Jorgensen made a stop in Knoxville Monday.
Jorgenson who is from Adel, is running across the state wearing a gas mask to help bring awareness to veteran suicides. Jorgenson tells KNIA/KRLS News running with a gas mask across the state is a metaphor for life. He says every day during his run he will go through points of suffering and points where he feels the finish line isn’t anywhere near. But he says he just has to keep one foot in front of the other and keep moving forward.
Jorgenson began his run in Council Bluffs last Wednesday. He says he hasn’t had to pay for anything and he has been overwhelmed with the amount of support during his run. He says he set out to do the run as self-sufficient and sleep where he could and eat where he could but he hasn’t had to do that the whole run because so many people have handed him drinks, paid for his food and given him places to stay and shower. Jorgensen says, for veterans thinking about suicide, it shows that people care, people want to help you if you let them. Running 30 miles per day, Jorgenson says he hopes to finish in Burlington on Friday having run close to 340 miles.