Mike Crowley wants to do something meaningful for his friend James Ceglia, serving with the 69th Fighting Banshees in Iraq. Mr. Crowley is seeking sponsors for his 110-mile walk from Oyster Bay to Montauk, starting on April 25.

It should take about five days to complete the walk, at the end of which an American flag signed by all the members of the 69th will be raised in Montauk. All the money raised will go to his lifelong friend, Mr. Ceglia. "I'm doing it for him since he is doing so much for us," said Mike.

James Ceglia, a self-employed carpenter and a member of the Atlantic Steamer Fire Company, has been serving in Iraq. The Atlantic Steamer Fire Company has been trying to fill the financial gap being experienced by the Ceglia family: his wife Caroline and their three children.

"I saw the marquee at the firehouse with James' name on it and thought 'God bless him' and when I found out about his financial difficulties I decided to do something," said Mike Crowley. He is an assignment editor at WTNH in New Haven, Connecticut. He graduated with the Oyster Bay Class of 1984 and attended New York Institute of Technology as a communications major.

Crowley knows his way around the world of reporting and has contacted Lynn Rassick in the press office of Governor George Pataki who is very active with the 69th. "I let them know what is happening." He said, "I always believe as a newsperson, we shouldn't become the story, but my news director thinks it is a very noble thing to do. He is a former Marine himself and has given me his blessing too."

He said when he was in his senior year at OBHS he considered joining the Army and spoke to recruiters in Hicksville. Instead he decided to attend NYIT and worked for News 12 and was on LI News Tonight with Ken Eckhart. "A lot of people started their careers there," he said. "Patty Ann Brown is now an anchor on Fox TV. Trish Bergen began on LI News Tonight with NYIT and now is on Inside Edition and is their weekend anchor and reporter." From the News 12 office on Long Island, Mr. Crowley went to their Bronx News 12 location. While there he was recruited to go to Baltimore. From there he went to Raleigh, NC and then Tampa, FL. While he was in Raleigh, he organized a hockey game that raised $16,000 for an EMT with brain cancer.

He came up with the idea of a walk when he was going through his family photo album. There were pictures of him with his dad walking, something they did a lot together, he said. "I thought, if I had a dollar for every mile I walked I'd have a lot. That made me think of walking to Montauk."

Considering that a marathon race is 26 miles, walking 20 miles a day for five days will be quite a challenge. Crowley said he would keep to a moderate pace of about three miles an hour. It means about seven to eight hours a day walking. "I don't want to use a bike for part of the trip. It's more emotional when you walk: soldiers don't ride, they walked. They walked all over Europe in WW II. It's better if we walk and it can be done." He's in shape for the test. "I play a lot of ice hockey to keep my legs fit. I put on a back pack and am walking 2.5 to 3 miles a day, before work."

He said, "We plan to walk down Route 25A. There are lots of restaurants and I have friends along the way so we will have places to stay. It's probably a longer walk then the 110 miles on the map since the road goes up and down hills. The safest part of the walk should be on 25A. Then we go down to Montauk Highway. That is the long stretch. I'm getting the State Police's permission. You are not allowed to walk on state highways, but this mission will be completed," he said.

His high school friend Cliff Montik, who owns an auto body shop in Syosset, plans to join in the walk for several miles. The men are looking for people to sponsor their walk by giving a nickel, dime or dollar for each mile they walk. He is seeking help from the Town of Oyster Bay in terms of signage and sponsorship. They will set up an account for the proceeds of the event. Crowley paraphrased President John F. Kennedy saying, "Ask not what your soldier can do for you but what you can do for your soldier." Crowley wants people to see what one person can do to help a friend until he gets on his feet again when he returns from Iraq.

He wants to encourage people to talk to those in service, to touch base with them. He talks to James via e-mail. "When the soldiers come home, it's important that they don't have added stress. It's a great cost to the soldier and some don't come back and for those that do we need to help. This is one small thing I could do to help him out. It only costs getting some physical exercise," said Crowley.

Last weekend he met with Atlantic Steamer Fire Chief Frank Ozol who will bring up the walk to the firemen so that they can become sponsors. His brother Chris Crowley is also an Atlantic Steamer firefighter.

Crowley is working on a press release with the times, place and projected route for the walk. "It's the least I can do, and why not. It's a great way to get to know Long Island and what better way to spend my vacation," he said.

If you would like to become involved in the walk, please call 922-5971, leave a message and he will get back to you.