Foar the Brave — Belmar NJ Fundraiser
A fundraiser for veteran mental health
When
Saturday, April 11, 2026
6:00 – 9:00 PM
Where
Marina Grille · 905 NJ Rte 35, Belmar NJ
What
Cocktails, Pizza, Raffle & Auction
Come to Belmar for an evening with the crew before they ship out to California in June. Meet the rowers, hear the mission firsthand, and be part of the community sending them off right. Every dollar raised goes directly to veteran mental health organizations doing real work on the ground.
Can't make it in person?
Donate online — every amount fuels the row and the cause. Or follow the journey and share their story.
17.6
veteran suicides per day — VA official (2022)
6,398
veterans lost to suicide in 2023
61%
were not receiving VA healthcare
18–34
highest-risk veteran age group
The VA's most recent report records 17.6 veterans dying by suicide every single day. America's Warrior Partnership's Operation Deep Dive estimates the true number may approach 44 per day when unreported self-injury deaths — often overdoses — are counted. The gap between those figures reflects a system that still isn't capturing every loss.
In 2023, veteran suicides fell by 44 total deaths from the prior year — a rare moment of measurable progress. It is not nearly enough. FOAR THE BRAVE rows to accelerate it.
Partner charities
Hard Rock Charlie Foundation
Charlie Mike Foundation
Honor
Sub Zero Mission
World's Toughest Row — Pacific 2026
2,800
miles of open Pacific Ocean
~62
days average crossing time
5K+
calories burned per rower per day
On June 6, 2026, the crew will depart Monterey, California and row — without engine, sail, or resupply — across 2,800 miles of open Pacific to Hanalei Bay, Kaua'i. No assistance. No rest beyond two-hour sleep windows. Waves up to 20 feet. Salt sores. Sleep deprivation compounding daily. Just four men, one boat — the Overwatch — and a cause worth every stroke.
Rowers alternate in two-hour shifts around the clock for the entire crossing. Each is expected to lose upward of 26 lbs on the water. Everything needed for two months at sea is aboard the RX45 racing shell from the moment they push off.
StartMonterey, California
FinishHanalei Bay, Kaua'i, Hawaii
LaunchJune 6, 2026
BoatRX45 — "Overwatch"
ClassFour-person, fully unsupported
IP
Ian H. Pienik
U.S. Army Special Forces · 27 Years
Currently serving at USSOCOM. Retires May 2026 — then immediately rows 2,800 miles across the Pacific. A longtime mental health advocate within the Special Operations community. Based in Largo, FL with his wife and three children.
JP
John Pallasch
Public Servant · 25 Years
Worked alongside four governors, two presidents, and the Mayor of Washington, D.C. He rows to honor a deep, lifelong respect for the men and women of the armed forces. Based in Aiken, SC with partner Sarah and a sprawling rescue animal family.
JL
Joe Leach
Lt. Col., U.S. Army (Ret.) · 26 Years
75th Ranger Regiment. Special Forces. In 2023 he rowed the Atlantic with Fight Oar Die — and came back for the Pacific because the mission isn't finished. Originally from Warrenton, MO, now in Apex, NC.
SR
Steve Robinson
Air Traffic Controller · 23 Years
A master of high-pressure, zero-margin environments. Son of a Vietnam veteran. Scholarship football player. Proud father of two daughters. He rows for the vets who didn't make it home whole.
Health & performance · Time donated to the crew
Dr. Veera Gupta, DC
Sports Chiropractor · Wim Hof Method Instructor · Author · Optimum Health Chiropractic, Manasquan NJ
A Palmer College honors graduate (2007) with nearly two decades of elite athlete care, Dr. Veera brings her "whole person approach" to the Foar the Brave crew — treating root causes, not symptoms. That philosophy is exactly what a 62-day unsupported ocean row demands. She is a certified Wim Hof Method instructor, training athletes in cold exposure, breathwork, and mindset — the same pillars that separate ocean rowers from everyone else.
Her book Built From Stardust draws on decades of medical research to argue human performance has no ceiling. Dave Asprey describes her as "a real pro who understands things about your nervous system and performance that no one else knows." A deeply rooted Shore Area local, she has served as Medical Director at events from SUP Around Manhattan to the Princeton Children's Triathlon, provided free care to Hurricane Sandy victims, and earned a Joint Legislative Resolution from the New Jersey Senate.
CCSP Sports Chiropractic
Active Release Technique
Wim Hof Certified
Certified EMT
KT Tape Practitioner
Nutrition Counseling
NJ & NY Licensed
Dr. John Volpe, DC
Chiropractor · Co-Owner, Optimum Health Chiropractic · Former Competitive Rugby Player
Dr. John knows what it means to push a body past its limits. At the University of Wyoming he helped lead the Men's Rugby team to the national championship, then went to Australia to compete professionally. A cliff-diving injury left him with six months of debilitating back pain — chiropractic care corrected what medicine couldn't, and he was so impressed he became one himself.
A Palmer College graduate specializing in sports injury and whole-body wellness, Dr. John brings the same intensity he brought to competitive athletics to his patients. Together with Dr. Veera, he runs a practice that athletes describe as "genuinely fixing the body — not managing it."
Palmer College, DC
Sports Injury Specialist
Diversified & Activator
Flexion-Distraction
Toggle Recoil
