When veteran Rodger Howell returned from Vietnam after serving in the Army during the war, he became a police chief in Erin, Tennessee. Howell spent many years working to provide for his family. However, during those years, Howell was dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder from the things he experienced during his service. Not only did he experience mental difficulties, but his exposure to Agent Orange left him with many health problems. According to The Meadville Tribune, doctors gave him five weeks to live.
Nearly three years later, Howell is alive and well. He has found renewed faith in humanity and in himself, all because of a trip he decided to take. Not long after his diagnosis, Howell purchased a covered wagon and two horses. Since then, he has been traveling across the country in his old-fashioned vehicle.
Howell has been to Michigan, North Carolina and Florida with plans to visit Ohio and Niagara Falls.
"What you dream about, you have to do," Howell told the Salisbury Post.
His trip has inspired other veterans and non-servicemembers along the way to realize that life is what you make it.