MURFREESBORO, Tenn. – Army Veteran and VA Tennessee Valley Healthcare System (TVHS) employee Melvin Gatewood embarked on a 35-mile ruck march today to raise awareness and inspire other Veterans to seek out mental health care resources at TVHS.

The march started at the Alvin C. York VA Medical Center and will conclude April 21 around 1 p.m. at the Nashville VA Medical Center.

Community members and Veterans are encouraged to be at the Lee Victory Park rally point in Smyrna on April 19 until 4 p.m. to connect with Gatewood and learn more about TVHS mental health care services.

“Eighteen years ago on April 19, 2005, I forever changed my life,” Gatewood said. “I remember being upside down in a Humvee in Iraq asking God to spare my life, and he did. I returned home with scars, both physical and mental. It was here at TVHS that I started my road to recovery. Today, I take a symbolic journey to inspire someone to take that road to recovery and get the help that they need.”

Veterans are encouraged to learn more and make a mental health appointment by calling 615-225-3720 or visiting www.va.gov/tennessee-valley-health-care. For immediate assistance, contact the Veteran Crisis Line at 988 and press 1. 

Tennessee Valley Healthcare System is an integrated tertiary health care system comprised of two hospitals, the Alvin C. York campus in Murfreesboro and the Nashville campus, as well as 19 community-based outpatient clinics located in Tennessee and Kentucky. TVHS provides ambulatory care, primary care, and secondary care in acute medicine and surgery, specialized tertiary care, transplant services, spinal cord injury outpatient care, and a full range of extended care and mental health services.

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