Florida Man Begins Three Year Hike to Promote Message: Love Life

Lake Villa, IL (PRWEB) April 21, 2006

Fifty-nine year old Steve Fugate, of Vero Beach, Florida, has just begun a three-year hike of the United States. Walking corner to corner and across the country, he carries a thirty-five pound backpack and a large red and white sign bearing his simple message: Love Life. Fugate is hiking to promote and encourage support for “Trail Therapy,” a program of the Stevie Lee Fugate Foundation.

This is not Fugte’s first long-distance hike. In 1999, while on a thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail, he received word that his only son, Stevie, had tragically taken his own life. After the funeral, Fugate struggled to find some kind of peace and understanding through the usual avenues of therapy, counseling and support groups. Unsuccessful, he returned to the exact location where he had abandoned his hike to finish what he had started. There, in the tranquility and solitude of the long and winding path, he found his answers. He has made several long-distance hikes since, covering over 17,000 miles with little pocket money, without corporate sponsors, and depending on the kindness of strangers he encounters along his way.

“The journey is my home,” says Fugate, “And I want no other parent to suffer the horror that I have suffered and I want no other young person to miss out on loving life!” Knowing first hand the healing powers found in nature, Mr. Fugate established a nonprofit foundation in his late son’s name. He believes that by finding beauty and serenity in America’s vast network of hiking trails, America’s youth can find a renewed sense of self esteem and will adopt a healthy lifestyle, both physically and emotionally. He hikes to spread his message, “Love Life,” and to bolster support for his “Trail Therapy” program. He is not alone on his current hike; along for the walk is the first “Trail Therapy” participant, a 19-year old from New York.

Their hike has begun at the base of the Appalachian Trail at Springer Mountain in Georgia. Once the thru-hike of the “AT” is completed in Maine, Fugate’s hiking partner will return home to further his education, and Fugate will continue traveling, southwest to San Diego, where he will hike the Pacific Crest Trail to Canada. From the northern terminus of the PCT, he will travel east to the Continental Divide Trail, hiking that to the US/Mexican border, and from there, he will travel home to Florida. This hike is expected to take three years and Fugate will travel approximately 13,000 miles.

More information can be found at http://www.TrailTherapy.org. While on the trail, Mr. Fugate can be reached by cell phone at 914-772-4244. The Stevie Lee Fugate Foundation is a registered 501(c)(3) charity, Federal Tax ID #75-3101844.

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