Jimmy Wayne Going for a Nice, Long Walk
It's pretty much a straight shot from Nashville to Phoenix. You go through Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico and then before you know it, you're in Arizona. Sounds easy, right? Just 1700 miles due west and you're there. OK. Now imagine you're walking with not much more than the clothes on your back and some camping gear. That is what Jimmy Wayne is going to do starting on Jan. 1. He wants to raise awareness (and money) for homeless teens aging out of the foster care system. So he is literally almost going to become one. Again. Wayne went through all kinds of foster and group homes and was homeless at 16 when Bea and Russell Costner took him in, long hair, tattoos and all.
Wayne's plan for this "Meet Me Halfway" journey is to walk roughly 25 miles a day, sleep on the ground and ask for food like he would if he was truly homeless. However, he told me, "I'll be simulating the life of a homeless kid, but I won't have any of that fear that they have." And he'll be journaling as he goes, and updating everyone from the road on what will likely be a two-month walk. While I'm not going to be there with him, I will be by his side in spirit and will be blogging about his journey. I'll even post his whereabouts so if you live near Memphis, Fort Smith, Ark., Amarillo, Texas, or Albuquerque, N.M., you might want to bring him a couple sandwiches and/or some hearty encouragement.
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Peacock Queen says:
I love Jimmy Wayne. I love his music, and I love his heart and soul. The story of how he turned his life around as a teenager is as heartwarming and touching as any story you will hear. It’s wonderful that he is doing this to raise awareness about homeless teens, but I am not surprised.
Tenn says:
That’s quite a trek , Jimmie - kudos to you for undertaking such a difficult task and I hope people do notice and lend a hand -
HALIAX/ Calgary Fans says:
I had was lucky to see Jimmy Wayne in concert this month in Charlotte, and he is an amazing performer. But what really s great is his willingness to give back to others who are in the same boat as he once was.
I work with these young people in Canada that are eighteen and have no where to go or no one to turn to. Pretty sad that our system decides that eighteen is the magic age of growing up. Most of them not having a family to turn to, or someone to speak up for them to see them through. I would love to see Jimmy Wayne take his walk someday to Canada, we could use all the help we can get, there isn’t enough media coverage here for people to be aware of the problems we have. I wish you the best of luck Jimmy, I know you will complete what you have set out to do. These young people are lucky to have you on their side, all the best.
Rick Davis says:
Jimmy,
Call me, your former teacher Ricky Davis….I don’t have the new number for you.
Thanks - Ricky