Two men. One amazing journey.
Kieran Sherry and Jack Chalkley are walking across the United States to raise money for charity. Their adventure took an unexpected detour in Centre County this week when a friendly Bellefonte resident gave them a place to bunk for a couple of days while they avoided some inclement weather.
Sherry and Chalkley will tell you that they’re just a couple of buddies from London who decided to take on the challenge of walking across the United States. Their story says otherwise.
They’re walking from New York City to Santa Monica, Calif. Right now, they’re just two weeks — or 240 miles — into their trek. That’s about 10 percent of the 2,900 miles they’re going to walk by the time it’s all said and done.
“There was a guy who did it before and he did it in 90 days,” Chalkley explained. “He was walking 40 miles a day. He planned it out so he walked mostly on sidewalks … we’re trying to follow his route.”
Sherry, 24, is walking for CLIC Sargent, a charity that helps children with cancer.
“My best friend’s sister died just a week before we came out,” Sherry said. “So I’m walking for her.”
Chalkley, 25, is walking for Parkinson’s UK, formerly the Parkinson’s Disease Society.
“My grandfather suffered with Parkinson’s for 12 years,” Chalkley said. “He lost his battle in 2010. It’s about the work they do not only for those with the disease, but the bereaved. They put my grandmother through counseling, so it’s about the work they do after the death as much as they do trying to find a cure for the disease.”
The decision
Sherry and Chalkley were sitting in a London pub when they decided to trek across the United States.
“It was buy one get one free at a cocktail bar and we had a few too many cocktails,” Sherry said. “We just decided to do it.”
They’re joking, right? Nope.
“That’s the complete truth,” Chalkley said.
Sherry had been reading a blog about a man who walked across the United States and the more they talked about it, the more they liked the idea.
“It was right after Christmas,” Sherry explained. “I said ‘we’ve gotta do this.’”
Their charity page went up in January. In the first week, they raised 1,000 pounds, or around $1,200.
“That was it. There was no backing out,” Sherry said.
But it wasn’t that easy. Sherry, a recruiter, had a life decision to make.
“I had to quit my job. I’ve got nothing to go back to,” he said.
Chalkley works as a chef in France. He was able to get time off from his job.
“I was able to get the time off,” he said. “I’ll start back to work in January.”
After that, the duo went all in. They booked their flights to the United States. Two weeks ago, their adventure began.
An unexpected stop
In Pennsylvania, Sherry and Chalkley lost the route. They wound up walking along Interstate 80.
“That wasn’t too much fun,” Chalkley said.
In addition to dodging raindrops and trash, there were some road hazards that most in central Pennsylvania can understand.
“It was just horrible walking,” Sherry said. “It’s roadkill and trucks. That’s about it.”
Once they exited I-80, they stopped at the Hublersburg Inn, looking for something to eat.
There, they met Andi Biddle, the owner of the Inn.
“We were just looking for a loaf of bread,” Sherry said.
Biddle listened to their story and decided that she could do better than a simple loaf of bread. With the weather forecast calling for heavy rains, she invited them into her home to crash for a couple of days until the rain subsided.
They wound up staying a couple of nights at her home in Bellefonte.
“It’s just really nice to be able to give something,” Biddle said. “It takes your humdrum week and gives you something unexpected. You’ve got your regular week planned and something like this happens. It’s really special.”
Sherry and Chalkley were perfect houseguests, she said.
“They’ve been great to have here at the house and they’ve been great with the kids. I don’t think they realize what they’re doing by giving someone the opportunity to open up their home and give something,” she said.
The duo offered to pitch a tent in Biddle’s backyard, but she offered her couches instead. As the rain came down on Monday night, Sherry and Chalkley sipped sodas in front of the fireplace.
Biddle said she didn’t have any hesitation having the two as houseguests for a few days.
“I’ve hosted soccer coaches before,” she said. “I met these guys and they seemed like really good people … really good guys.”
On this night, both men were happy to have a warm, dry place to sleep.
“We appreciate it,” Sherry said. “We really do. We’ve been lucky enough to meet amazing people on the route.”
The response
The duo has been amazed at the response their website, www.bigoldwalk.com, has generated. Their goal was 10,000 pounds. As of press time, they’ve already raised 9,382 pounds, or $14,621 in U.S. dollars.
They have their own money, of course, and also have some corporate sponsorship.
As for the funds that are donated, they don’t really see it.
“We have a charity page, so we don’t see the money,” Sherry explained. “We can’t touch any of the money. Once the timer runs out on the page, it goes into escrow. It will be split between the charities.”
None of the money raised will be used to help fund the trip.
“We’ve said that from the beginning,” Sherry said. “We don’t want any of that money to pay for the trip.”
According to Chalkley, the corporate sponsorship has helped immensely.
“They’ve given us a phone to use,” he said, “and flights back to London once we’re done.”
The adventure continues
Earlier this week, the duo headed toward Black Moshannon State Park as they readied to leave Centre County and venture toward western Pennsylvania and Ohio.
Although they’re about 240 miles into their journey, they’re excited for what lies ahead.
“There are times when you look at the map and you realize we haven’t really put a dent into what we have to do,” Sherry said. “But we’re excited to see the rest of the country, some of the national parks, things like that.”
They know that places like Des Moines, Iowa and Omaha, Neb., can be vast. They’ve had great luck meeting friendly people in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. They just hope that luck continues.
“Fingers crossed,” Chalkley said.
No matter what happens, they said they will always remember central Pennsylvania and the kindness they encountered in Bellefonte.
“We hope our best days aren’t behind us,” Sherry said. “We’ll have a bad day, struggle through and then something amazing will happen like what’s happened here. It’s been incredible.”
For more information about the Big Old Walk or to donate funds, visit www.bigoldwalk.com by clicking HERE.
