"I swing hard. When I connect, it's big.
When I miss, it's big ... and I swing again.
Go BIG or go home!" ~ Jim Dreyer
U.S. 250th Cannonball Memorial Swim
Apply for an
Honorary Cannonball
In 2026, to commemorate America’s 250th birthday, Jim "The Shark" Dreyer towed 250 cannonballs (weighing 1,500 pounds) while swimming 22 miles from offshore in Lake Michigan to the coastal town of Whitehall, Michigan. See Official Video above.
The cannonballs will be used to build a memorial sculpture in Whitehall that forever honors the valorous Combat Veterans who fought to win and preserve the freedom of this great nation over the past quarter millennium.
Twenty-two miles was chosen for the distance, as 22 is the number most associated with the estimated number of Veterans who die by suicide daily often due to post-traumatic stress and traumatic brain injuries.
The Shark began his journey on August 7th, encountering 3-5' waves and an ever-changing current throughout the quest ... a current that would take him off course toward the end of his 29-hour swim.
Waves battered the dinghies and the swimmer overnight, forcing a 2-hour battle to save a dinghy from sinking, and leaving The Shark with separated ribs.
Despite these ordeals, Jim "The Shark" Dreyer finished the swim after dark the second night on August 8th, at Whitehall’s Goodrich Park in front of an energized crowd during the White Lake Area Maritime Festival.
WDIV 4 Detroit: Post-Swim Interview
FOX News America Reports
NewsNation Elizabeth Vargas Reports
The 250 cannonballs delivered in
Dreyer’s arduous swim are
reminiscent of the American
Revolution in 1776 and will be used to build the U.S. 250th Combat Veterans Memorial.
Details of the sculpture's unique design will be released here soon!
Cannonballs represent the weight of war experienced by our troops in combat and also symbolize the weight many Veterans continue to endure after returning to civilian life.
Dreyer will pull 249 of the cannonballs in two dinghies and will carry one cannonball on his back for his late father, a World War II Combat Veteran who served in the European theater.
Cannonballs mounted with an engraved plaque on this one-of-a-kind U.S. 250th memorial may be purchased to forever honor loved ones (living or deceased) who sacrificed to serve our country in combat.
The plaque will be numbered so it can easily be located when visiting the memorial.
Commemorators may write a tribute for their honorees and submit it along with photos and videos to be viewed by memorial visitors when scanning a QR code.
KIAs, MIAs, WIAs, and POWs may be noted on plaques.
Commemorators will receive a photo of their cannonball and plaque (after they are mounted on the memorial) that also contains a QR code, so they may access their honoree's online tribute from a display in their own homes.
Your credit card will be taken during the application process but you will not be charged for your $750 tax-deductible donation to have your honorary cannonball and plaque mounted on the Memorial until after your application is approved. You will receive an electronic receipt via email.
Donations will go to the VFW Post #3256 in Whitehall, Michigan, for construction of the Memorial. Any fundraising surplus will benefit the VFW Post #3256 and a percentage of the surplus may be distributed to other participating Veterans organizations.
Donations may be made to support the Memorial without obtaining a cannonball by clicking the "ORDER HERE" button on this page, then clicking the "DONATE" button.
Apply for an Honorary Cannonball
Thank You to "Team 250"
Our All-American Partners!
