APPALACHIA - A young boy from Illinois will be spending nearly two months out in the open this summer as part of an effort to raise money for a homeless shelter according to the Christian Newswire.
Little League will end early this summer for twelve-year-old homeschooler, Jeremy Wood of Elgin, Ill. He is also going to miss Vacation Bible School. The day after his twelfth birthday in June he and his father are headed for the Appalachian Trail. During a 50 day period they will sleep outside and hike close to 500 miles to raise awareness and resources for the homeless.
The Application Trail is not totally new to Jeremy. He was first on the trail in Pennsylvania as a five-year-old, taking a day hike with his family. Last year he visited the trail in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and this past March he hiked a week in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. He has never attempted such an extended hike, but is looking forward to "spending time with my Dad" and "not having to practice piano everyday." His biggest disappointment is missing the playoffs with his little league team.
In 1921, the Appalachian National Scenic Trail was simply an idea. Benton MacKaye - an off-and-on federal employee, educated as a forester and self-trained as a planner - proposed it as the connecting thread of "a project in regional planning."
The efforts of countless volunteers made MacKaye's idea a reality. Today, the Appalachian Trail is best known as a simple footpath, yet it also has other identities - as a greenway, a flyway, a "mega-transect"; by which to monitor environmental health. It is the mission of the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to ensure that future generations will enjoy clean air and water, scenic vistas, wildlife and opportunities for simple recreation and renewal along the entire Trail corridor.
The Appalachian Trail, which was completed in 1937, is a unit of the National Park Service. It Is the nation's longest marked footpath, at approximately 2,175 miles, and was the first national scenic trail, designated in 1968. It crosses six national parks; eight national forests and touches 14 states. More than 9,000 people have reported hiking the length of the Trail. It extends from Maine to Georgia including Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio along the way.
Wood first came into contact with the homeless through volunteering at the Wayside Center in Elgin. He has come to learn that while few children live on the streets, many families are broken apart because of homelessness.
Anyone wishing to sponsor Jeremy Wood or learn more of his journey can visit www.waysidehelp.org or email jeremyshike@gmail.com. For further information check christiannewswire.com.
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