Generation Voice

Irreverent Warriors hit the road to build awareness - and raise money for a family need

Delaware Public Media | By Delaware Public Media

Published April 7, 2025 at 3:59 PM EDT

Delaware Public Media works with aspiring high school journalists across the state through our youth media program Generation Voice.

This school year, we are featuring work produced by Polytech High School students Matthew Minshall and Tory Ruhm, including this story on a recent Irreverent Warriors charity event

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Irreverent Warriors recently used a mini hike to a hockey game to help put the spotlight on a serious issue.

“Irreverent Warriors is a veteran’s organization to help prevent veteran suicide. When you bring a whole bunch of veterans, and we talk about things and we eliminate isolation, we can stop that suicide,” said event coordinator, Branden Zeitler, who explains the significance of the hikes.

“Hikes for us is like nostalgia. Nostalgia’s a huge part of why we exist. With nostalgia, with our packs that you see here, we wore them when we were in the military. So that means that when you’re wearing these packs and you’re going on a ruck march or a hike, you’re sitting there, talking to your buddy.”

But IW’s mini hike and hockey game weren’t just about helping vets. They also sought to raise money for Roman Schmid, an airman’s son who has developed stage 3 cancer.

“The whole entire charity event we’re doing today with the Delmarva Warriors is called Rally for Roman. We’re using solidarity of everybody to rally behind him to let him know that he is going to be safe, that he is well-loved, and that he doesn’t need to fear anything,” said Zeitler.

The hike took participants to a charity hockey game between the FOP police officers and Delmarva Warriors.

““The hike and the game are both here in Harrington. The hike starts here at the police station and then we’re going to be hiking all the way to the skating rink, which is 1.3 miles.”

Zeitler hopes this was a positive experience for all involved.

“We love making sure that our brothers and sisters are well-known, that they’re loved, and they know that they need to exist on this earth.”

And Zeitler says more hikes are planned in the future.

“Our next mini-hike is going to be in May for the rally for first responders. And then our major event, we’re doing on September 20^th. For only that hike alone, is for veterans, service members, and anybody’s who’s joined in the military.”

If you love to hike and want to support the people who served our country, visit the Irreverent Warriors website to check out their next hikes. You can also find them on Instagram, YouTube, or Facebook.