The Walk For Burma Thanks You!

Thanks to all who walked:

Full Time Walkers: Tim Meister, Lisa Valeskey, Sara Zondag, Liz Meister Part Time Walkers: Mike Meister, Iain Parsons, Jessica Buegue, Matt Buege, David Buege, Mical Schafer, Richard Zondag, Barbara Zondag, Nathan Zondag, Marcus Zondag, Chrissy Swearingen, Debi Koeller, Jon Koeller, Jessica Kiecker, Kelly Vilski, Robert Meister, Nora Meister

Thanks to all other supporters!

Thank you all for your support and prayers for the Walk. We all truly appreciate them. The Walk for Burma came to a successful conclusion on August 11th, 2002, 9 days ahead of schedule, when our group of walkers arrived at the steps of the Capitol in Washinton, D.C. We were met by Jeremy Woodrum of the Free Burma Coalition, who arranged a dinner and housing  with members of the Burmese community in the area. They were very hospitable and welcomed us with great excitement. We told stories from the Walk and discussed the reaction of the people we came into contact with along the Walk, which was generally very positive. Four walkers were able to walk the entire distance, an estimated 950 miles. They are listed above. In addition, we were happy to have part-time walkers join us for anywhere from one day to three weeks. Over 20 people walked with us at one time or another. It was great to have such support. After arriving in Washington, we stayed in the D.C. area for a few days, during which time we met with staff members from the offices of senators and congressmen from Wisconsin. They all seemed interested in the situation in Burma and seemed to express genuine concern for the people there. All four full-time walkers also gave interviews with reporters from Radio Free Asia and Voice of America, as they were extremely interested in the Walk. Some of these interviews were broadcast into Burma. Although the level of success is hard to gage, we feel that the Walk was effective, as we were able to raise financial support for Alternatives for Burmese Children and much awareness for the situation in Burma. We were interviewed/photographed by approximately 8-10 newspapers and were able to talk to hundreds of people along the way. Many people stopped their cars on the side of the highway to ask what we were doing and many others offered help in the form of food, a place to stay, or a donation. It was uplifting to experience this kindness of people, strangers, first hand. As a follow up, we have set up meetings with some churches in the Milwaukee area who have expressed interest in hearing about Burma and the Walk, and supporting it financially. These will be occuring in the next few months and we hope to be able to send yet more donations to ABC. I feel more strongly than ever before that the world needs to know about the horrible situation in Burma. We had a great Walk and hope that our upcoming endeavors with be equally productive. Liz Meister, Walk Coordinator                                                     walkforburma@yahoo.com