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Saratoga County native Jimmy Thomas, age 61, of Ballston Spa, completed the final leg of his arduous, five-month journey on Saturday, Feb. 4.
Flanked by a police escort made up of several local agencies, Thomas arrived at the Empire State Aerosciences Museum (ESAM) in Glenville at around 2 p.m.
Awaiting him at the finish line were dozens of community members, veterans, and police officers, as well as a firetruck with its ladder extended, draping an American flag. Video posted on Facebook showed him hugging and talking with supporters.
“We made it!” Thomas told the crowd, garnering cheers and applause.
The celebration marked the end of a journey that began in September 2022, when Thomas launched his kayak into the Mohawk River in Glenville bound for Key West, Florida.
It was all to raise awareness for a fundraiser dubbed Doggie Paddle for Veterans, a partnership with the Glenville Rotary that seeks “to get our country's attention to help our American veterans find a better tomorrow with a service dog,” reads the fundraiser’s website.
It’s an issue that’s near to Thomas’ heart, having lost his own service dog, a golden retriever named Boots, to cancer in the summer of 2022, he told Daily Voice.
After suffering from stress-induced seizures, Thomas was paired with Boots thanks to assistance from the Mountain to Miracles Veterans Foundation.
"The dog I got happened to be able to recognize that I was going to have a seizure way before I had a seizure," Thomas said.
Now, he’s on a mission to make sure that other veterans facing similar challenges can be paired with their own furry companions, whose costs with training can top $50,000.
Along his journey, Thomas stopped at various campsites for food and some much-needed rest. He told Daily Voice he was blown away by the generosity of strangers who helped him along the way, many hosting him in their homes. Some even cooked him steak dinners, he said.
“Where did all these nice people come from that you never see or hear of?” he said. “That part of it is just so contagious.”
Thomas said he’s had plenty of people tell him he’s crazy for attempting such a grueling trip. But it wasn’t his first time attempting such a difficult journey.
In 2020, he helped raise awareness for service dogs by biking across the United States, riding from Newport, Oregon, to the VA hospital in Albany.
“I honestly think, knowing what I know about veterans and the suicide rate, I would have to say I’d be crazy not to do it,” Thomas said.
He’s hoping the adventure, which he dedicated to Boots, will raise six figures in donations.
“Success will be when we help the first person,” he said. “But when that one person changes, he or she will change several other people’s lives.”
Those interested in supporting the cause can donate on the Doggie Paddle for Veterans website.
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