Jimmy Wayne Makes it to New Mexico on 1,700 Mile Walk
Last week, Jimmy Wayne crossed the New Mexico border on his walk halfway across America to raise awareness for at-risk teens aging out of the foster home system. "I am so incredibly excited that I have made it into New Mexico," Jimmy tells The Boot. "I am one state away [from finishing the walk]. I can't believe it!"
Jimmy launched project Meet Me Halfway in Nashville, Tenn. on New Year's Day, taking a huge step up to the plate to do his part to help end teen homelessness. With an exception of taking approximately 20 days off from the walk to regroup and perform concerts, Jimmy has walked over 1,000 miles in 106 days. He has roughly 640 miles left to walk before reaching his final destination -- HomeBase Youth Services in Phoenix, Ariz.
As Jimmy was walking along historic Route 66 through Texas, the road came to an abrupt end, forcing him to go back to the drawing board and find a new road to walk. "I had to make a detour off of Route 66 because there was nowhere to go," Jimmy explains. "The Interstate, private property and government property were the only roads that I could walk on, and I didn't have a choice. I had to take a side road which is called a farm road. That farm road led me into someone's pasture and ranch full of cows and cactus.
"Route 66 ends along Interstate-40 and it doesn't pick back up for about 30 miles," Jimmy continues. "Then it breaks up again, and it doesn't pick back up for 80 miles away, so there was no way I could walk along Interstate-40, and there was no way I could skip 80 miles. So I had to find a side road. We looked at a map, and we had to draw a straight line going south and find a road that ran parallel with Interstate-40, which was Highway 60. That was road I was originally on when I was in Oklahoma. We told the GPS to take us there because if I start there and walk parallel with Interstate-40, I'm still on track."
While his loyal followers, fans, radio and media are cheering him on for the amazing job he's doing, Jimmy stays humbled by noting he is not doing anything that can't be done by anyone who puts their mind to it. "All I'm doing is walking across free America," Jimmy states. "The guys in the military overseas are surrounded by enemies fighting for our country. My hat goes off to them. Those are the ones who should be praised to the highest. Anyone can do what I'm doing. Not anyone can go over there, be away from their family, be shot at, carry a bag full of utilities they need and carry a gun. That breaks my heart. I carry a camelback with water in it. The least I can do is fight for our kids and our future here while they are fighting for our freedom. This is me finding a way to give back. I can never give back as much as they're giving. That's why I couldn't skip 10, 20, 30 or 40 miles. If you're going to talk the talk, you better walk the walk."
To follow Jimmy on the remainder of his walk or to donate to the cause, visit the official website for project Meet Me Halfway by clicking here.
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