Losing a loved one is never easy, no matter what the cause. Many find comfort and meaning by raising awareness or funds in memory of those who have passed. When family or friends pass tragically or after battling illness, the drive to take action to help others often kicks in even stronger.
Mary Hersch, a 61-year-old Wisconsin native, embarked last September on a 1,439-mile walking journey from central Wisconsin to the Texas coast. Her mission was to raise awareness about pulmonary fibrosis, the lung disease that took her mother’s life 25 years ago. When her mother passed away, Hersch’s father requested that half of his ashes would join with her mother’s ashes in the gulf at Port Arkansas, when the time would come.
Since walking has always been a passion of Hersch’s and her mother loved the beach, the chosen route seemed most fitting. She partnered with the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation who managed the fundraising and helped her map out her voyage.
Along the way, Hersch often had some company. A couple of her friends accompanied her, driving along slowly in their motor home, as she walked. Many drivers stopped along the road to check if all was OK, if she needed water, and learned about Hersch’s undertaking at the same time. The poster of her mother’s picture hung on her friends’ RV sparked curiosity from passerby, triggering conversation and bonding among people.
On the 89th day of her journey, Hersch received word that her father had died of a heart attack. While she took the news very hard and had considered delaying her projected end date, she gained strength knowing he was rooting for her and felt his presence along each step. She experienced a newfound push to pull through, and had planned to have family meet her half a mile before the coast with her father’s ashes.
Hersch arrived at Port Arkansas on December 30. She scattered her father’s ashes into the sea, and her parents were reunited. She walked for 107 days and raised over $34,000 for the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation.
