Inspiring

Advertisers know that in our hero-worshipping society, it's image that sells.

Too many times, however, it's the jet-setting dudes who are idolized and get the endorsements. Joe Namath was one of the first to cultivate that with his Broadway Joe persona.

In our lifetime, we've seen bad boy athletes like Brian Bosworth and Dennis Rodman ride their outrageous acts to the bank. Currently, Johnny Manziel is the latest noncomformist character to cash in.

But if it's stability of character and exceptionalism you're looking for in a celebrity, then central-eastern Pennsylvania certainly has a worthy candidate in Mike Viti, a former star athlete at Berwick High School and the U.S. Military Academy.

As a fullback and middle linebacker for Coach George Curry 15 years ago, Viti went on to become an all-state player, and captained the Berwick team his last two years.

He also excelled in the classroom and as a student leader, having been a two-time class president.

Viti could also tolerate pain. He played the second half of his 2003 senior football season, and all of that wrestling season, with a torn ACL. That injury ended his wrestling career in the middle of his senior season. At the time he had a 23-0 record.

Given his extremely disciplined work ethic as a student athlete, Viti was a natural fit for the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. A hard-nosed player who craved contact, he became one of the best blocking fullbacks in the nation and captained the Black Knights his senior year

While serving in Afghanistan during the War on Terror, Viti experienced the same camaraderie for his fellow soldiers as he did playing Army football.

One of his quarterbacks, Chase Prasnicki, was killed in June 2012 when his vehicle was hit by an IED, just two days into his first tour of duty in Afghanistan.

After returning home, Viti noticed the country was paying less attention to the war in Afghanistan and also realized that something was missing from his personal civilian life.

Last year he left his job to honor and memorialize the 6,803 military service members who have died overseas since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Covering roughly 25 miles each day, he spent the past eight months hiking across the states to to make sure people don't forget the sacrifices of the fallen.

Last Saturday, we got to see and hear from Viti on national television after he concluded his nationwide walk at the Army-Navy football game in Baltimore.

He told an interviewer he was not only inspired by the individual legacies of the soldiers lost, but also by the families they left behind.

In visiting with the gold star families like Chase Prasnicki's, Viti helped them better understand who he was as a friend and comrade in arms and what his own personal journey was all about.

Quality leaders and role models like Mike Viti are rare and renew our hopes for this nation's future.

By JIM ZBICK

tneditor@tnonline.com