Sedona AZ (October 10, 2012) – On Thursday, October 25, 2012, Al Slusser will walk through Sedona as part of his Arizona Walk, a 500 mile walk from the Utah-Arizona border north of Page, Arizona south to Nogales, Arizona at the Arizona-Mexico border. The purpose of this walk is to bring awareness to poverty in Arizona and encourage food and fund donations to restock Arizona food banks for the winter.

Sedona Community Food Bank will receive all the donations from the Sedona portion of the Arizona Walk. Volunteers will man the uptown Visitors Center and the State Route 89A and Upper Red Rock Loop Road corner location for food drop-offs. If you prefer to stock the shelves of another food bank, contact it for drop-off times and a suggested needs list. The Arizona Walk only asks that you give so others may eat.

Slusser will begin his walk at the Wayside Chapel in uptown Sedona, Arizona at 9:30 a.m. He will walk to the Chamber of Commerce Visitor Center for a 9:50 a.m. Meet and Greet, then continue on to three Sedona meeting areas along his route – New Frontiers Natural Marketplace, Safeway, and the southeast corner of Upper Red Rock Loop Road and SR 89A (across from Sedona Red Rock High School).

Drop off points for Sedona Community Food Bank food donations will be manned by volunteers at the Visitors Center and the SR 89A and Upper Red Rock Loop Road corner location from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on October 25.

This is the third dedicated long distance walk for Slusser. In 2010 at age 71, he completed the Coast 2 Coast Walk from San Diego, California to Annapolis, Maryland, a 3,200 mile walk dedicated to senior citizens and disabled Americans that took 223 days to complete. The following year, Slusser walked from Key West, Florida to the U.S.-Canada border and dedicated his East Coast Walk to U.S. troops and American veterans. He anticipates that his Arizona Walk pulling a small “covered wagon” with food, water, clothes, and camping equipment will take about two months.

The public is welcome to join Slusser on the Arizona Walk. Affectionately nicknamed Ironman Grandpa, Slusser extended the offer to join his walk saying, “Anyone desiring to do so is invited to walk with me to express support to fight poverty in Arizona.”

Suggested donations for the Sedona Community Food Bank include canned food, peanut butter, rice, flour, sugar, paper products, and baby food. For more information, view www.sedonafoodbank.org or call the Sedona food bank at 928-204-2808.

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