The Walk

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This March, Dylan Geick will begin a 2,400+ mile pilgrimage across America in support of our nationwide community of veterans and first responders. Dylan will be walking unsupported from sea to shining sea, carrying everything he will use to survive in a ruck on his back. This journey will be made to honor his late step-father, Thomas John Bauer, to carry his memory across all the miles he will never walk. Tom devoted his life to others, serving both in the U.S. Army as an infantryman pre and post 9/11, and later as a paramedic and firefighter across multiple communities near his home in northern Illinois. 

The first 30 days of the walk will be taken under a vow of silence in deference to “The Young Dead Soldiers Who Do Not Speak.” Dylan wishes to provide a voice for the voiceless, and space for himself and others to reflect on the sacrifice of those who protect and serve. These young men and women will never be able to reflect on their own sacrifice, and we must give their life and death meaning of our own. 

The walk is a personal quest for Dylan. Undertaken in a state of strict sobriety, he will not only be meditating daily and rigorously - challenging himself physically, mentally, and spiritually - but also using the opportunity to support the twin communities which Tom was a part of. After completing his first 30 days, Dylan will begin a massive push across various social platforms to spread awareness of our nation’s mental health crisis and raise money for our two phenomenal charity partners.

To live with change, we need principles that don't. Dylan has defined his personal philosophy and purpose as follows: Make Peace within, that you may bring peace unto others. Seek Truth above comfort, that you may live in harmony with the universe. Live in Love, that you may share it with the world. Throughout the walk Dylan will be promoting these values, of which he learned so much from Tom. Together, we can spread this message to every corner of the earth.