Target acquired — hug commencing
Photo
courtesy of the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center
Gino Greganti, cofounder of the Human Hug Project, hugs veteran James Coyle at the West Palm Beach VA Medical Center.
For Veteran Voice
It’s Ian Michael’s dream to go across the country hugging people. No, seriously.
The Operation Iraqi Freedom veteran had debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder. In his darkest time, Michael went back to his mother’s to try to find some meaning and purpose in life. There he had a dream about riding a bicycle across the country hugging people.
“The Ian two years ago, you’d never seen me hug someone expect family,” the Marine Corps veteran said.
Michael and his USMC buddy Gino Greganti co-founded the Human Hug Project. The two, along with Greganti’s wife, Erin, recently toured all of Florida’s Department of Veterans Affairs 33 medical centers giving fellow veterans hugs. It’s part of their #hugavet project.