Superman today. Captain America tomorrow.

That’s the course that Allen Mullins has set for the next 10 years of his life.

Mullins has been turning heads in Troy for the past couple of days and it’s not surprising that he would. Not many 27-year-old men are walking around town in a Superman suit.

“But you’ve got to get the attention of people if you want to get your message heard,” Mullins said with a smile. “I’ve got a message.”

His message is one of patriotism and of great appreciation of today’s men and women of the military who are fighting for what’s right in the world.

“Like Superman,” Mullins said. “He was always fighting for what was right. That’s why I’m wearing this suit. It’s the color of our flag and it stands for what’s right in the world.”

Mullins’ hope is that, sometime along the way, he can raise enough awareness of the plight of America’s veterans, especially those who have suffered debilitating injuries both physical and mental, that Joe Citizen will step forward in their support.

“The government is supposed to support our veterans and, if it doesn’t, then we’ve got to,” he said.

Mullins is on the first leg of an awareness trek that will take him to every state capitol.

But he’s not counting on the support of politicians when he arrives.

“They won’t pay any attention to me and what I’m trying to do,” he said. “But maybe others will. Somebody has got to carry the flag for our troops.”

The journey of about 20,000 miles will take about four years but Mullins said he is up for it.

“I fired a warning shot when I walked five thousand miles a year ago,” he said. “I started on Jan. 5, 2009 and ended on Nov. 15, 2009. This journey I started on Jan. 15 in Knoxville, Tennessee but, when I’ll finish, I’m not sure but I’m shooting for four years.”

Mullins calls Dalton, Georgia home right now but he has no real home and no family.

“I grew up in orphanages,” he said. “From what I’ve been told, I don’t have any living family. So, it’s just me alone on the planet. But I don’t cry about it. You can’t cry for someone you never knew.”

Mullins said because he is alone in the world, he is able to devote 10 years of his life to a cause that he believes to be right.

“This is kind of a mission for me,” he said. “It’s a chance for me to do something for our soldiers and to tell people about Jesus. I just want people to know that God loves all of us and that we should do what’s right and that means supporting our veterans and our fighting men and women. If I have to dress like this to get the message across that’s okay.”

In time, Mullins will shed the Superman suit for Captain America attire. “Now, Captain America is a real fighter for a righteous cause.”

Mullins said he’s not sure what his next “mission” will be but he has four years to think about it. “But it will be challenging.”

And, if Wonder Woman happens to come along, that will make whatever he does all the better.