If a person or group really wants to bring attention to an issue, Glenn Koster suggests they find their love and get involved.
After beginning Feb. 1 in South Miami Beach, Florida, the Hutchinson, Kansas, native is on a walking trip to LaPush, Washington. His goal is to bring awareness to foster care and adoptions along the way.
His journey brought him through Magnolia Thursday afternoon and will result in 4,400 miles once completed.
“I have traveled 1,280 miles so far, and hope to finish my trip by October 5,” said Koster.
Bringing awareness to foster care and adoptions is personal for him. He was abandoned at age 6, adopted and pulled out of that home 13 months later following abuse and neglect. At age 10, he was adopted again, but later found himself floating through the foster care system.
According to national statistics, there are nearly 428,000 children in foster care in the United States on any given day. Three years ago, over 670,000 children spent time in U.S. foster care.
In Arkansas, state organizations have said the number of children in foster care is near a crisis point. It’s estimated that more than 3,000 children in Arkansas are in foster care, but there are only about 1,500 foster homes.
There are many ways one can show support for foster care and adoption services. Hester suggested being a “break” or “emergency” parent, mentor, or CASA representative who is a voice for the child.
“You see, everyone gets excited when a new baby is born into a family. Why can’t the same be said when a foster child comes to the home?” he asked, adding that 80 percent of foster children enter a home with nothing but the clothes on their backs. He added that individuals can show support by joining groups that provide items for them.
Arkansas is Hester’s sixth state he has traveled through so far.
From Magnolia, he headed to Waldo and then west to Texarkana. From there, it will be to Fort Smith, Fayetteville, Bentonville and into Joplin, Missouri. From there, it’s on to western Kansas and proceeding across the country, ending up close to the Canadian border.
“I have to average about 21 1/2 miles a day, six days a week, to reach my destination by October 5,” he said. His wife is along on the trip, traveling in a recreational vehicle.
The walker said he takes the opportunity to rest on sidewalks, trees, side of creeks, or where ever he can find a spot.
He noted that he doesn’t walk at night and has to play close attention to motorists.
Weather-wise, Hester said he’s been rained on many times and recently had to take cover in a Walmart during a tornado warning near Ruston, Louisiana.
“One of my most unusual rain moments was when I was crossing the Mississippi River Bridge at Natchez. When I stepped on the bridge, the rain was pouring down. When I walked all the way across it, I stepped off on dry ground,” he explained, adding that that was unbelievable.
He doesn’t walk when there’s lightning, hail, tornado, or a hurricane.
“I’ve experienced three of those already,” he said.
Hester said he wears comfortable New Balance tennis shoes. With this being his third walk, he said he found out early on how important shoes were.
“During my first walk from Kansas to Oklahoma and then to Nebraska, my feet were blistered after only three days. My feet had flattened out, moving my shoe size from a 10 1/2 D to a 12EE. I jokingly told people that I was wearing the top of the line Walmart walker, which doesn’t provide much support,” said Koster.
He stated there have been many walks for a number of different causes, but he expects to be the first to walk from Miami to Seattle.