Trek for Troops

Homes for Our Troops is a non-profit, non-partisan, 501 (c)(3) organization founded in 2004. This organization is strongly committed to helping those who have selflessly given to their country and have returned home with serious disabilities and injuries.

Trek For Troops is a team of three young college students, who are working though Homes for Our Troups and aspire to raise money to build houses for our wounded vets. Scott Williams, Paul Rose and Matthew Walker are taking on all 2600 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail stretching from the Mexican border all the way up to Canada!

All three young men are singers and hail from Westlake Village having come together initially as a result of being in choir together. Scott Williams (WHS class of ‘03), Paul Rose (WHS ‘04) and Matt Walker (WHS ‘05) have set out to help combat veterans with permanent disabilities.

Here is a recent personal message from Erik, President of Trek for Troops: One of the most moving parts of working for Trek for Troops is looking out at the audience while Matt, Paul and Scott perform. From young to old, it seems that no one can escape the power of their music and their message. Nothing exemplifies this more than a little girl named Sophia. We met Sophia when her father, Brian, invited us over to his house to have a barbeque with his family in Sacramento. After showing off her ability to count by tens and joyfully watching the boys perform, Sophia went and got a couple of dollars to donate to the veterans from the money she is saving up for a trip to Disneyland. Thank you, Sophia, for your kindness, cuteness, and your generosity. You are an inspiration to us all here at Trek for Troops.

The following is a look at a few days activities.

• July 4th: Trek for Troops in Sacramento for July 4th
• July 2nd: The guys found out they had a 7:00 a.m. interview in Sacramento on July 3rd! With Erik and Michelle driving, they all left Westlake Village (where the guys had been staying while Paul recovered from his injuries sustained in the High Sierras) at 11 p.m. to get to Sacramento in time. KCRA Channel 3 interviewed the boys and they sang “America the Beautiful” – very well considering their lack of sleep! Follow this link to view their performance: http://www.kcra.com/video/19941470/index.html
• July 4th: CW 31’s morning show, “Good Day Sacramento,” invited the guys on to sing and spread their message. They had a 7:30 a.m. interview and were only supposed to stay until 9:00, but made such a good impression that they were asked to stay another hour. They ended up performing songs each time the show went to commercials!
• July 4th: Trek for Troops sang at the Rancho Cordova Pocket Parade at the beginning of the harness racing in front of about a thousand people. Then, at 8:30 that evening, they performed at the Cal Expo fireworks show in front of over 10,000 people! They were a big hit with the huge crowd. One man admitted he was originally going to “clown” the guys but said they were in fact “the real deal.” Trek for Troops collected $700 in donations on July 4th.
• July 5th: The boys got ready to leave Sacramento and continue on the hike. The “Good Day Sacramento” show caught up with them one more time and much discussion was had about the boys’ – specifically Matt’s and Paul’s – ever-growing facial hair. Gillette Company: Matt says that for a donation to Trek for Troops they will shave their beards using your product when they finish the trek! The boys were dropped off at Echo Lake on July 5th to resume the hike. To see the videos of Trek for Troops’ TV performances and interviews go to http://gooddaysacramento.com/ Click on the magnifying glass in the video player, and enter “Trek for Troops” in the search box.

Many of us at the Thousand Oaks Elks Lodge had the priviledge to hear these young men when the came and sang for us a few months ago.

At present Scott, Paul and Matt are in need of the items below in order to complete the hike. Items can be dropped off at 2326 Yew Drive, Newbury Park CA 91320. For more information please contact Michelle Larson at 805.390.0749.

Asics Gel Trabuco 11 WR Size 10.5
Asics Gel Trabuco 11 WR Size 12
MSR 4 oz Isobutane Fuel cells
REI Jungle Juice Spray Pump 100% Deet Knorr
“Rice Sides, Fiesta Sides, Sides Plus” (all Semi-Instant Rice)
Mountain House Dehydrated Meals (Serves 4)
Mountain House Dehydrated Meals (Serves 2)
10.5 oz Bag of Sun Chips (any Flavor)
14.5 oz Bag of Doritos (any Flavor)
Beef Jerky
Regular size Jif or Skippy “Natural” Peanut Butter (Must be this specific type)
Full size candy bars (Butterfinger, Snickers, Baby Ruth, Almond Joy)
Full size candy bars for Scott (Milky Way, Crunch Bars, Twix)
Power Crunch Bars
Regular Size Flour Tortillas Pop Tarts (Cinnamon-Brown Sugar, Cookie Dough, S’mores)
Hot Chocolate (Swiss Miss Milk Chocolate or Swiss Miss Mocha Cappuccino)
Cheese Sticks (packaged like string cheese)
Extra Dry Salami

If you would rather donate money to make the hike possible, click here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=6361816

When you visit their website you can track their progress as well as listen to them sing, and hear them talk about their mission. Take a moment today to be inspired:

Tags: Elks Lodge 2477, Veteran's