A Navy veteran is currently swimming the length of the Mississippi River in order to honor America's fallen soldiers.
Chris Ring, a 10-year veteran of the Navy, is swimming 2,552 miles over a six month period in order to benefit Legacies Alive, which is a veteran-run organization committed to keeping the memory of soldiers killed in action from fading. The swim will take Ring from Minnesota all the way to the Gulf of Mexico.
"We’re doing this so no one ever forgets about those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. It’s about awareness and our desire to carry on the legacy of our fallen soldiers," Ring said in a statement on Legacies Alive's website. "It’s not about setting a record, it’s about bringing awareness to our fallen heroes, and connecting as many of their families as possible."
"I think about that a lot while I’m swimming."
Along the way, Ring is stopping to meet with families of fallen soldiers. In July, he met with Marianne Panno, who lost her son Ronald in Vietnam nearly 46 years ago.
"Sometimes I think maybe people have forgotten," Panno told the St. Cloud Times. "It's so good when they remember. Things like this help, because we always remember."
Ring said he hopes to finish the swim by November. He is covering about 16 miles per day.