Posted 1:58 am Wednesday, June 17, 2009
Teen Makes Trek To Raise Funds For Missionaries
By KELLY GOOCH
Staff Writer
Staff Writer
WHITEHOUSE -- Mike Durbin Sr. thought his 15-year-old son might be joking when he said he wanted to walk 500 miles from Whitehouse to Springfield, Mo., in a month to raise money for missionaries.
However, Michael Durbin, a Whitehouse High School student, has made it beyond his halfway point and was in Van Buren, Ark., Tuesday afternoon.
"The title of my journey is 'I Will Walk.' I want to show people you don't have to be somebody to do something," Michael said.
It all started about three months ago when Michael attended a banquet for Speed the Light, a student-initiated, Springfield-based organization that provides missionaries with transportation and communications equipment.
Michael said Chet Caudill, national director for Speed the Light, spoke at the banquet about understanding "true sacrifice" and raising money for the organization.
That night, he said he went home and prayed for God to give him a dream regarding "true sacrifice," which resulted in a vision to walk 500 miles.
He said he informed his father about his desire the next day and was told what he wanted to do was impossible.
"I told him if I set a goal I could (positively) reach, it wouldn't be true sacrifice," Michael said.
He officially began his expedition June 1, with the goal of arriving in Springfield by July 1.
Michael said he walks about 15 to 20 miles a day with his uncle Marccus Durbin while his father and 8-year-old brother Dalton travel ahead in a support vehicle.
As he and his uncle approach a town, he said his father will go into the town and ask restaurants if they would provide meals.
Mike Durbin Sr. said the walkers have had every meal except one donated to them.
"Everybody has been willing to help us out. ... I've just been completely amazed how generous people are to feed us," Michael said.
As for sleeping arrangements, Durbin said his son spends the night in a travel trailer or in a hotel room someone donates.
Michael said he has faced challenges such as weather and exhaustion during his trip, but has been faithfully supported by members of his church First Assembly of God in Whitehouse. The church's Senior Pastor Michael Fleming drove from Dallas to walk a day with the teen and crossed the halfway point with him in Poteau, Okla.
"It was a major milestone in the trip," Michael said of reaching the halfway point. "It was really great to pass it and know that you're there."
Mike Durbin Sr. said Youth Pastor Danny Copeland, with the church's Thrive Student Ministries, will join them for the final week of the trip.
Peers also have shown their support and two students from a youth group in Broken Bow, Okla., walked with him and his uncle for 12 miles one day, Michael said.
When asked about how much he wanted to raise for Speed the Light, he said he did not want to set a monetary goal, but hopes for $10,000.
Michael said people have stopped him on the side of the road and asked why he was walking in the heat, and some of them have donated money.
Once his son reaches Assemblies of God national headquarters in Springfield, he will be doing interviews and filming promotional material for Speed the Light, Durbin said.
"It's going to be a major accomplishment when it's all said and done," Michael said. "I've learned how to push myself as far as I can go throughout the day."
