HADDON TOWNSHIP, N.J. - A New Jersey man's seven-year journey to walk around the world is nearing its conclusion is his home state.
Good Day Philadelphia first met 26-year-old Tom Turcich back in April 2015, when he set out to travel the world by foot. At the time, the now 33-year-old Haddon Township native explained how he decided to embark on the trip after the death of his friend, Ann Marie, who was just 16.
His goal was to walk across seven continents by 2020, but he hit some speed bumps after he came down with a bacterial infection while traveling through South America.
The infection kept him off his feet through the fall of 2016 as he returned to New Jersey. "I lost about 45 pounds and was just in agony all of the time," Tom recalled. "Eventually an antibiotic started working, but yeah it laid me up for a while."Tom says the COVID-19 pandemic also created some delays, but that he never considered giving up on his goals.