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MY HERO: The Old Soldier Who Set a World Record Helping Veterans

Patriotism and the complicated legacy of Vietnam prompted Bill Wallace to act


spinner image bill wallace sits on a red bicycle while friends and family hold an american flag and a welcome home, bill sign behind him
Bill Wallace returns home after biking 3,226 miles in 68 days.
Courtesy Bill Wallace

At the height of the Vietnam War, Bill Wallace, now 75 and living in Colorado, had received a draft deferment to attend college and escape having to serve. But when he heard that a high school classmate had been killed in the conflict, he abandoned his studies during his junior year so he could join the Army.

spinner image closeup of a rusty dog tag with the text thank you veterans engraved in it, next to a flag of the United States

You can subscribe here to AARP Veteran Report, a free e-newsletter published twice a month. If you have feedback or a story idea then please contact us here.

As fate would have it, Wallace spent three years in the infantry, serving from 1967 to 1971 and being discharged as a sergeant, but he never made it to Vietnam. When he returned, he was shunned by those against the war and tried his best to cope with feelings of shame because the conflict was so unpopular. 

Wallace’s father had been a marine in World War II, and his uncle, a pilot, had been killed during that same war. “I felt an obligation to serve my country,” he told AARP Veteran Report.

Wallace went on to complete his college degree and settled in western Colorado, where he was a high school math teacher for 23 years and later a county commissioner, before retiring in 2019. 

His commitment to his fellow servicemen is what then led him to get serious about a long-held dream: to ride his bike across America. He wanted to raise awareness about the challenges — including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), homelessness and unemployment — that some veterans of the wars in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan face while assimilating back into society.  

Wallace’s idea remained dormant until he met his partner, Diane Kelley, 70, nearly three years ago. “He talked about it a lot, and I could tell it was heavy on his heart,” Kelley, a widow and former sales executive, told AARP Veteran Report.

spinner image a young bill wallace stands in an army uniform and helmet in front of a white building
Bill Wallace stands in front of the Army barracks in Fort Huachuca, Arizona, in 1968.
Courtesy Bill Wallace

It was “his patriotism” and service in many forms that were key to their connecting, she added. Kelley’s late husband, John, served in the Navy during the Vietnam War, while their son Michael, 52, was in the Navy during the Gulf War, and her grandson Tristen is a Navy electronics technician. Another son Scott, 48, served in the Air Force.

In May 2021, Wallace began mapping out a route. The Coloradan had been cycling since 2009 and had found that it helped his recovery following a hip replacement. He started a blog to chart his journey and partnered with nonprofits to assist with fundraising.

A year later, he set out on his trek across America, concluding the cross-country expedition in 68 days, two-and-a-half months, and 3,226 miles. He cycled from his hometown of Berthoud, Colorado, to Atlantic City, New Jersey, and then from Oakland, California, back to Berthoud. 

Kelley flew out every seven to 10 days to bring supplies and encouragement, and friends held a supersize American flag, billowing in the breeze, to welcome an exhausted Wallace home as he crossed the finish line.

It was only after he had completed the journey that it occurred to him that he might be the oldest person to have achieved this feat. 

He contacted Guinness World Records to find out. Fortunately, Kelley and he had meticulously documented every aspect of his trip. A key piece of evidence was the mechanical odometer attached to his bicycle wheel, which had clocked each mile. Wallace now holds a world record for being the oldest person to have crossed America by bicycle.

He believes 9/11 shifted the present generation’s understanding of the military’s role in society. “I think people now understand that those in the military are giving up a lot of their freedoms to support freedom, regardless of where they’re sent or what their assignment is,” he said. “They deserve our respect.”

Kelley said Wallace was her hero for channeling the angst he felt over his service in the Vietnam era into his patriotism and respect for those who serve in uniform. He not only raised funds for and awareness of veterans, but he also became a world record holder in the process.

“I’m proud of him,” she said. “Bill believed in himself, he made a plan, and he surrounded himself with people who supported him. The time, effort, money and commitment he put into his journey is typical of him.”

“He has a very giving and loving heart,” she added. “He carries five-dollar and one-dollar bills in the glove compartment of his truck so that he’s prepared to give change to someone in need. His mindset is to serve his community. He doesn’t see the negative. He sees what’s possible and turns it into reality.”

You can subscribe here to AARP Veteran Report, a free e-newsletter published twice a month. If you have feedback or a story idea then please contact us here.

Do you have a veteran hero whose story might be a MY HERO story in AARP Veteran Report? If so, please contact our editors here.

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