Student hikes to New Orleans to raise relief funds
Ben Poor makes his way around the
Mississippi State Capitol in Jackson during his 850-mile walk from
Indiana to New Orleans to raise money for Hurricane Katrina relief. A
UMNS photo by Woody Woodrick.
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A UMNS Report
By Woody Woodrick*
Aug. 29, 2007
When
Ben Poor told his parents he wanted to go for a walk this summer, he
wasn’t talking about a stroll around the block or a quick power walk.
Poor took a loooooong walk. Like 850 miles.
The 20-year-old United Methodist walked from his hometown of New
Palestine, Ind., to New Orleans to raise money for Hurricane Katrina
relief. He left New Palestine, near Indianapolis, on June 26 and reached
New Orleans on Aug. 9.
"It all started a couple of years ago with a mission trip to
Oklahoma," Poor said during a stop in Jackson, Miss. "I knew then I
wanted to go to New Orleans. Then I went backpacking in Europe with my
family and decided, '"Why not do that for a purpose and a good cause?'"
As of mid-August, Poor's pilgrimage to New Orleans had raised
$10,830, including $3,000 donated at the outset by New Palestine United
Methodist Church, where Poor and his parents are members.
Along the way, Poor relied on the kindness of others for places to
stay and many of his meals. He often contacted United Methodist churches
for assistance.
"The church is united," said Poor, a student at Ball State
University. "Everybody (in The United Methodist Church) is connected.
They really helped me out. If people helping me couldn’t contact another
Methodist church, they called Baptists or Catholics. It’s all about
God. It’s unbelievable how he has taken me on this walk."
One step at a time
As he began his journey, Poor was accompanied by friend Matt Gillott
to the Indiana state line before going it solo. He carried some clothing
in a backpack and brought along books on tape. Most of the time,
however, he was simply walking.
"It gives you a lot of time to think. I think about God and keeping safe, my family and friends, sports."
- Ben Poor
"It gives you a lot of time to think," Poor said of the walk. "I
think about God and keeping safe, my family and friends, sports."
Walking 15 to 20 miles per day, he was often sore from the physical
exertion. The key was finding someone willing to drive and pick him up
at the end of each day's hike so he could eat and sleep before returning
to that spot the next day to resume his trek.
Poor’s journey through Mississippi came at the beginning of a heat
wave. If actual temperatures weren’t more than 100 degrees, the heat
index usually was. "It was insane walking in all that heat," he said.
"It really takes a toll on you both mentally and physically. Your body
says you can’t go on anymore, but you tell yourself you have to do it."
At one point during the Mississippi stretch, Poor's parents took a week of vacation and traveled with him.
"Most people who do this sort of thing have a support team or others
who travel with them," said Maria Poor, who called her son's walk "a
pretty scary undertaking."
"He made it pretty clear we were not going to be able to talk him out of it," added Mike Poor.
Making new friends
In Jackson, Mike and Maria Poor found the United Methodist
Mississippi Annual (regional) Conference office and got assistance from
staffers Brenda McGloster and Krystal Bonds. They helped to secure
places for Ben Poor to stay as he continued his journey south, including
contacts with Lumberton United Methodist Church, Poplarville First
United Methodist Church, Picayune First United Methodist Church and the
churches of the Picayune Circuit.
Ben Poor
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In Poplarville, which was directly affected by the hurricane, church secretary Diane Weiss took care of the young walker.
"We were thrilled to death that he was doing this. We were open to
doing whatever we could for him," she said. "We gave him a place to
stay. We have a bed and breakfast here. The people that run the
Blueberry Inn, Richard and Myra Sharp, took him in as their own. Their
grandchildren had come to see them, and he just fit right in with them."
Pedestrians are not allowed on interstate highways, so Poor walked
mostly two-lane highways after leaving Poplarville. He recounted only
one close call - in Kentucky - when one car was passing another just as
it reached him.
Poor reached New Orleans on Aug. 9 to find a banner welcoming him to
the city and a band playing. "Getting there was such a sense of
accomplishment. It was unlike any feeling I’ve ever had."
Poor spent a few days in New Orleans before returning Aug. 13 to New Palestine. He since has returned to college.
"I put forth a little bit of effort and time, but it was nothing
compared to what the volunteers have done and what the people there have
gone through every day since the storm," he said.
*Woodrick is editor of the Mississippi Advocate, the newspaper of the United Methodist Church’s Mississippi Annual Conference.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.
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Resources
Ben's Walk
Katrina Church Recovery Appeal
UMCOR Hurricanes 2005
Mississippi Annual Conference
Louisiana Annual Conference |