For Memorial Day, Our Brother’s Keeper walks to help veterans

The group calls attention to the issue of veterans’ suicide and aids area veterans in need.

Memorial Day weekend began under gray skies and steady rain across the Mon Valley, but the weather did little to slow members of Our Brother’s Keeper as they marched 22 miles Sunday to honor veterans lost to suicide after service.

The annual walk began at 8 a.m. in the parking lot of Community of Christ Church in Fayette City and continued through Mon Valley communities as participants carried American flags and messages of support despite steady rain and humid conditions throughout the day.

California Area High School students who completed in the run Sunday with Our Brothers Keeper, from left, are Ben Ziolecki, Brayden Crockett, Kobe Veazey, veteran and Our Brothers Keeper founder Steve Molek, Kaleb Veazey, Charles Meiss and Trenton Slavic. Submitted

This year’s walk was dedicated to Deana Lynn (Martorella) Orellana, a former U.S. Marine from the Charleroi area whose death in 2016 became part of broader conversations surrounding post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and veteran suicide awareness.

The event was intended to honor Deana’s memory while also encouraging conversations about the mental health struggles many veterans continue to face after returning home from military service.

The nonprofit organization was founded in 2022 by Army veteran John Dora and Marine veteran Steve Molek. What began as a single 22mile walk through the Mon Valley before Veterans Day has grown into an ongoing mission focused on veteran suicide awareness, outreach and peer support for veterans and their families.

The 22-mile distance reflects the statistic long associated with national veteran suicide awareness efforts.

Deana was born Sept. 18, 1987, in Pittsburgh and raised in the Charleroi area. She graduated from Charleroi Area High School in 2006 before serving in the U.S. Marine Corps during Operation Enduring Freedom.

She later deployed to Afghanistan as part of a Female Engagement Team, units that worked directly with Afghan women and children during the war.

She died March 4, 2016, at age 28 and was buried at Sacred Heart Cemetery in Carroll Township.

Following her death, Deana’s family established the Deana Martorella Memorial Scholarship Foundation to support graduating Charleroi Area High School students while raising awareness about PTSD and suicide prevention.

As Sunday’s march came to an end, Dora reflected on both the physical and emotional toll of the annual event.

“Today is always tough physically and mentally,” Dora said after the walk.

“That last stretch is brutal until you can see I-70. But that’s why we do it, because it’s tough. Life is hard. Not everyone has it all figured out and their ducks in a row. That’s alright.”

Dora said the walk serves as a reminder that difficult moments should not define someone’s life.

“One bad day doesn’t need to be your last defining moment,” he said. “There is so much life that Deana has missed out on and will because of a permanent solution to a temporary problem. If you ever feel like you’re at your end, please pause a minute and think about your future. Because tomorrow is another day and you matter.”

The organization also encouraged veterans and community members struggling with mental health challenges to seek support and continue moving forward rather than becoming another statistic tied to veteran suicide.

Despite completing the demanding 22-mile walk Sunday, members of the organization continued participating in Memorial Day observances Monday throughout the Mon Valley.

Dora participated in the Monongahela Memorial Day parade as part of the Color Guard while Molek attended additional ceremonies honoring fallen military service members.