Dateline: May 24, 2001

4 teams finish walking 

Sue Church, County FCS AGent

May 15th marked the eighth week and final day of the annual Walk Across Texas campaign for health conscious residents of Donley County. 

Fifteen teams participated during the event of which four reached the established goal of walking to South Padre Island which is 736 miles from Clarendon. They were Community Walkers (1302 total miles, captain Derlene Graham), Herring National Bank Buckaroos (999 miles, captain Gayle Edes), St. Mary’s (923.1 miles, captain Denise Bertrand), and Texas Trotters (777 miles, captain Lana Topper). Within shouting distance of South Padre was the Clarendon College team “Who Let the Dawgs Out” led by Wanda Smith (720.8 miles). Close behind was Stan’s Stinkers (captain Stan Leffew) who walked 698.4 miles. 

Other teams giving it their best shot were: A Family Affair (captain Tammy Christopher); Clarendon Jr. High, Elementary I and II (captain Tiffany Shadle); Coach Schmidt and the Senior Has Beens (captain Coach Schmidt); Donley County State Bank Loaners (captain Bobbie Thornberry); HNB Busy B’s (captain Suzanne Taylor); The Big “Kahunas” (captain Cindy Shelton); and Weight Water Walkers (captain Annette Osburn). 

For the mileages reported to date, all teams walked a total of 9,024 miles. With 120 walkers registered, it averaged out to approximately 9.4 miles/walker/week. 

Community Bank Walkers garnered the traveling T-shirt for the fourth straight week. Their team averaged 162.75 miles each week.

Our appreciation goes to B&R Thriftway for allowing the Walk Across Texas map to be displayed for eight plus weeks in the store and to The Clarendon Enterprise for publishing weekly results. Each team captain is also to be commended for encouraging his/her teammates and reporting the team’s results in a timely manner.

Hopefully each walker will strive to maintain the nine-plus miles per week and encourage a friend or family member to join in. The investment requires a no-cost, 4-times-a-week commitment with the rewards being many. We appreciate each walker who participated this spring, and we’ll look forward to having you involved in the program again next year.