"A Hike for Hope"... and 50-anniversary Whitney Hike!
Posted: Tue Jul 21, 2009 6:49 am
A number of people on this board know that my younger son died unexpectedly last summer on July 27th. Sonny was only 21 years old, and the most compassionate, generous, loving person. Nothing can ever prepare us for something like this…and nothing will ever be the same.
Since his early High School years, Sonny was very involved as an advocate for the people in our County living with HIV/AIDS. I‘ve decided to carry on Sonny’s commitment to helping people living with HIV/AIDS by starting an annual hike event dedicated to raising funds and awareness of AIDS. “A Hike For Hope” is Sonny’s legacy. The outpouring of support has been amazing. Sonny had touched so many lives.
The first annual Hike for Hope will be the John Muir Trail. All future Hikes will be local and open to all who would like to join, but I’ve chosen to go solo on this first hike. My permit is for July 29th, however, I will be heading down this weekend and try to pick up a walk-in permit to start on July 27th. I can’t think of a more healing place to be than in the mountains on the first anniversary of Sonny’s death, or a more appropriate day to begin the annual hikes dedicated to him and the work he did.
I’m planning on taking a little over three weeks, with a couple lay-over days. It’s going to be such a meaningful trip in so many ways. Sonny loved Yosemite and the mountains; he hiked several sections of the JMT – his favorite segment was Onion Valley to Whitney. My last night on the JMT, August 20th, will be on Whitney Summit (weather permitting), then I will exit on the 21st.
I invite you to visit our site: http://www.ahikeforhope.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
On completing the JMT, I’ll be meeting my family at the Portal to hang out for a few days, then (walk-in permit willing) we’ll be doing our 50th anniversary hike up Mount Whitney! It was disappointing when our application was not drawn in the lottery, but we’re optimistic about picking up walk-in permits.
We’ll be camping in the Portal campgrounds for a few days, then hope to do a Whitney overnight August 23-24.
So… if any of you see a solo woman on the JMT (dressed in pink/black), or a large, happy group at the Portal or going up Whitney, please say “hi”!
Se you on the Trail!
Rosie
Since his early High School years, Sonny was very involved as an advocate for the people in our County living with HIV/AIDS. I‘ve decided to carry on Sonny’s commitment to helping people living with HIV/AIDS by starting an annual hike event dedicated to raising funds and awareness of AIDS. “A Hike For Hope” is Sonny’s legacy. The outpouring of support has been amazing. Sonny had touched so many lives.
The first annual Hike for Hope will be the John Muir Trail. All future Hikes will be local and open to all who would like to join, but I’ve chosen to go solo on this first hike. My permit is for July 29th, however, I will be heading down this weekend and try to pick up a walk-in permit to start on July 27th. I can’t think of a more healing place to be than in the mountains on the first anniversary of Sonny’s death, or a more appropriate day to begin the annual hikes dedicated to him and the work he did.
I’m planning on taking a little over three weeks, with a couple lay-over days. It’s going to be such a meaningful trip in so many ways. Sonny loved Yosemite and the mountains; he hiked several sections of the JMT – his favorite segment was Onion Valley to Whitney. My last night on the JMT, August 20th, will be on Whitney Summit (weather permitting), then I will exit on the 21st.
I invite you to visit our site: http://www.ahikeforhope.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
On completing the JMT, I’ll be meeting my family at the Portal to hang out for a few days, then (walk-in permit willing) we’ll be doing our 50th anniversary hike up Mount Whitney! It was disappointing when our application was not drawn in the lottery, but we’re optimistic about picking up walk-in permits.
We’ll be camping in the Portal campgrounds for a few days, then hope to do a Whitney overnight August 23-24.
So… if any of you see a solo woman on the JMT (dressed in pink/black), or a large, happy group at the Portal or going up Whitney, please say “hi”!
Se you on the Trail!
Rosie