By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post
If you happen to see someone in the near future pushing a red cart as he walks along U.S. Highway 24 through north-central Kansas, chances are that man is Michael Gmur.
The former actor and Marine veteran is walking across the United States, from Portland, Maine, to San Diego, Calif., to raise awareness of and money for homeless veterans.
When Gmur spoke with Salina Post late Friday afternoon, he was just a few miles west of Silver Lake, Kan., in Shawnee County. Gmur said he averages 25 to 35 miles per day.
Friday evening, he texted that he had ended his walk for the day at Rossville, Kan., also in Shawnee County, but that he had gotten a ride further west to Wamego, Kan., where he was staying the night. On Saturday morning, he planned to get a ride back to Rossville to resume his walk.
“My only rule is that I have to walk every step, so if someone picks me up for the night, I have to get a ride back,” Gmur told Salina Post.
According to his biography on IMDb.com, Gmur joined the Marines in 2006 and was an engineer and platoon sergeant. In 2009, he deployed to Afghanistan with the Marine Special Operations Command. He left the Marine Corps in 2010 at the rank of sergeant. Gmur has an associate degree in kinesiology and communications and a bachelor of arts degree in theatre from California State University-Northridge. After graduating in 2015, he became a fulltime actor. See his list of credits here.
Gmur said he started the walk at Portland, Maine, on June 8, because being an actor in Los Angeles was no longer fulfilling. He explained that he had become an actor to make a lot of money that he could use to help homeless people and people in need of food. While he was able to make a living as an actor, the big money eluded him.
“I decided I needed to do something more and I decided to start with homeless veterans,” Gmur said.
Gmur’s walk across the U.S. is featured on his website: ownyourgangster.com. He explained that following one’s heart is, well, at the heart of ownyourgangster.com.
“I believe that we all have an immense amount of potential that is waiting to be unlocked. Some of us have begun the process of unlocking that potential yet many of us let the noise of the outside world and our own inner critics prevent us from listening to our hearts and following the paths they are trying to lead us down. To Own Your Gangster is to Follow Your Heart, Face The Risks, Be open, and go for it,” he wrote on his website.
His website also includes a link to a GoFundMe campaign to raise money for homeless veterans and a link to Own Your Gangster t-shirts. Gmur said half of the t-shirt sales will go toward helping homeless veterans and the other half will be used to help other homeless people.
Gmur said he plans to continue his journey along U.S. 24 until he reaches Colby, Kan. Once there, he plans to head north to U.S. Highway 36, which he then plans to take into Denver, Colo. He said he hopes to be in San Diego, Calif., by late November or early December.