(ABC 6 News) – A Minnesota man walked 1,000 miles from Austin, Minn to Austin, Texas, all in the name of gratitude.

Daniel Crawford endured rain, thunder and some sunny skies to show just how grateful he is for our troops, old and new.

“My message is to connect with those veterans, daily. Look out for them, pick up the phone and call them and get off the screens,” said Crawford.

The task may seem daunting, but when you’re facing a cause that’s bigger than yourself, you can’t get in your head about it.

“If you really had a goal, if you had something that you cared enough about, if you had somebody in pain, how far could you walk?”

“My job for this walk is to promote 23rd Veteran; 22 veterans a day take their own lives,” shared Crawford.

“Far too many veterans are not living the life that they could and destroying themselves daily through alcohol, through drugs, through isolation. I’m the 23rd veteran that chose to live and to help the other veterans in need.”

If there’s one takeaway from his month-long walk on the Austin trail, it’s that the buck can’t stop here.

“Everyday, I saw veterans that were in need, and it was one after the other. People would come up to me and talk or I would approach them and talk and connect, and they’re not used to that connection; they’re not used to this face-to-face stuff.”

Crawford is living proof that sometimes the journey really is better than the destination, but he couldn’t pick a favorite part of his journey.

“The smiles. I can’t say one thing, the whole walk was just wonderful,” expressed Crawford.

Crawford chronicled his journey on his Facebook page, ‘1000 Mile Gratitude Walk.’