• 2006.09.03: September 3, 2006: Headlines: COS - Kenya: Adventure: Service: AIDS: The Pilot: For the third time in four years, Kenya RPCV Michael Farley trekked 170 miles on what’s called a “proper walk,” one without a guarantee of survival, to raise money for African orphans  Friday, September 22, 2006 - 7:53 am [1]

Kenya RPCV Michael Farley completes “Proper Walks” in Kenya



Michael Farley, executive director of Elk Hill Farm in Goochland, and Tommy Allen, a consultant for CapTech Ventures, took part in the 10-day trek, "A Proper Walk 2006," through the Ewaso Nyrio River Valley in northern Kenya. The goal was to draw attention to the AIDS pandemic in sub- Saharan Africa and raise money for the Makindu Children's Program in the Kenyan village of Makindu.

Kenya RPCV Michael Farley completes “Proper Walks” in Kenya

Goochland travelers finish trek in Kenya

Aug 18, 2006

Richmond Times-Dispatch

Two Goochland County residents walked 170 miles through rugged African terrain to benefit a children's center in Kenya.

Michael Farley, executive director of Elk Hill Farm in Goochland, and Tommy Allen, a consultant for CapTech Ventures, took part in the 10-day trek, "A Proper Walk 2006," through the Ewaso Nyrio River Valley in northern Kenya.

The goal was to draw attention to the AIDS pandemic in sub- Saharan Africa and raise money for the Makindu Children's Program in the Kenyan village of Makindu.

The program is designed to provide care for children whose parents have succumbed to AIDS.

Farley and Allen are two of five people who set out Aug. 5.

Jenny Bassett, Farley's executive assistant at Elk Hill, said she talked to Farley this week after the walk concluded.

The group posted its daily adventures on a Web site for the first nine days, but not for the 10th.

"I think they just needed a bed and a shower," Bassett said.

Farley served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Makindu 29 years ago. Allen, an extreme-sports athlete, spent years in Africa in the CIA and as a guide and professional hunter.

The first two walks in the series - in 2002 and 2004 - raised $60,000.

Here's what this year's hike was like, shown by Allen's dispatch Saturday:

"The day's walk was anything but a straight line - we did a great deal of zig-zag type walking through what is known as bamboo grass (gaining nearly 1,000 feet in elevation) - very nasty stuff that rivals the wait-a-bit thorn in its ability to dish out serious pain. It was over 90 degrees today, so the heat combined with the dust, thorns and ornery camels made for a very uncomfortable walk during the hottest part the Kenyan day. . . .

"While the environmental concerns are noteworthy and should be addressed, it is beyond the scope of this walk and is not the reason for our being here - the team that has thus far navigated its way over a 100+ miles of Kenyan terrain - are here for the 'Faces of Makindu,' and it is those beautiful little faces that we have had the priviledge of recording."

For updates, see http://www.aproperwalk.com.

The Goochland Gazette, a Media General newspaper, contributed to this report.

When this story was posted in September 2006, this was on the front page of PCOL:




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