October 03, 2004

Running On Empty (Well… almost!)

We've reached Utah and the three-quarter mark of our journey across the nation. We've survived mountains, blistering heat, aching bones, a few lightning bolts and one nasty little dog.

I am sure there will be more challenges in the coming months.

However, at this point in our journey we are facing a challenge that is not temporary nor on the map. It is financial. We have enough money to make it midway through Utah - assuming there are no surprises like last month's cell phone bill, additional repairs on the Geo Metro (our support car) and the like.

This has been a shoestring operation from the start, funded by my personal savings (now gone) and income from the stories we sell to newspapers. The newspaper income helps, but there's just not enough of it cover the expenses of the coming months. Our needs are basic: food, gas, cell phone, computer, lodging (when we can't find free rooms), and other day-to-day items. The desert is an added unknown at this point - one we simply chose to ignore the logistics of (as a matter of practicality or foolhardedness) and are now simply facing the consequences of on a day-to-day basis.

We began the journey without full funding simply as a matter of time and circumstance. I had waited as long as I could this past year, and waiting another year - for potential sponsors and additional benefactors - would have put the entire project in jeopardy.

Donations of any amount would be appreciated and would help us make it to California without carrying a mountain of debt. Any money donated will be used for this trip's expenses. Please do not contribute money that would otherwise go to a charity - charities come first.

You can make a contribution to Route6Walk by:

1) Sending check or money order to:
ROUTE6WALK
105 Wellsville Avenue
New Milford CT 06776-2722

2) Sending a donation online using PayPal.

3) Purchasing items in our online Route6Walk Store.

Notes:
• If making a contribution to the home address, simply make checks/money orders payable: Route6Walk.
• The PayPal online contribution account (Credit Card) is being handled through our web hosting company. Credit Card statements will list your contribution as paid to: NWVILLAGE. We have not set specific "Contribution Amount(s)." You can enter any amount you feel comfortable with. List "Route6Walk" in the "For:" line of the payment form.
• Five dollars of each purchase from the Online Store goes to Route6Walk. The remainder is simply the cost of the merchandise to us.