DON STEVENSON, a 72-year-old Washington state resident,
walked along Highway 57 south of Fredonia on Tuesday
during his 13,000-mile journey to raise money
for the Huntington’s Disease Society of America.
In bottom photo, Stevenson took a break with his wife
Loretta, who is accompanying him by driving a pickup
truck along the cross-country route.
Photos by Sam Arendt

By STEVE OSTERMANN
Ozaukee Press staff
Posted 7-16-08
If you saw a man walking along highways 57 and W between Fredonia and Grafton on Tuesday, it wasn’t a stranded motorist looking for a lift.

This intrepid pedestrian was Don Stevenson, a 72-year-old Auburn, Wash., resident who was putting in another day’s work for a good cause.

Stevenson, who describes himself as an “ultra-walker,” is on the final leg of a 13,000-mile journey on foot to raise funds and awareness in the fight against Huntington’s disease.

The walk, which began in January 2007, is taking him on a circuitous route that includes a 3,000-mile trek from the Seattle Space Needle to the Empire State Building in New York City. He plans to complete the trip in September.

Stevenson, who has walked more than 33,000 miles for various charities since 1998, plans to raise more than $20,000 in pledges for the Huntington’s Disease Society of America. He dedicated his latest effort to a friend whose mother and three siblings died from the disease.

“I’m very healthy for my age,” said Stevenson, a former pastor and Marine. “I started the habit of walking for health and meditation in September of 1996.

“I love walking and find it invigorating, inspiring and rewarding in many ways.”

Stevenson, who said he averages 180 miles walking per week, is accompanied by his wife Loretta, who drives a pickup truck. During the past week, the couple traveled from Green Bay to Milwaukee en route to Chicago.

The Ozaukee County leg of his journey included a stay at the home of Cedarburg resident John Elsner on Tuesday.

For more information on Stevenson and his work, visit www.pacinparson.org.