Family Promise prepares for Walk Across Wasilla

WASILLA— Family Promise Mat-Su is gearing up for Walk Across Wasilla, a socially distant alternative to their largest fundraiser of the year, Cardboard City. This new event will serve as a fundraiser while raising awareness for Valley homelessness.

“We are so excited,” Family Promise Mat-Su Executive Director Ginger Bear said.

Walk Across Wasilla is a week-long event inviting community members to spend five hours each day away from the comforts of their homes to walk across town, checking off scavenger hunt-type tasks related to the homeless client experience like applying for housing and filling out applications at the Mat-Su Job Center.

“Hopefully somebody’s gonna say, ‘why isn’t everything located in one spot? So they don’t have to walk so far and get so far to get the services?’” Bear said. “That awareness is the win.”

Bear said that Walk Across Wasilla participants are encouraged to take pictures of the various checkpoints to enter for a participation prize. She said that participants can also raise money for their daily treks by finding local sponsors who’ll provide monetary donations for however long they walk or whatever agreement they come up with.

Walk Across Wasilla starts Monday, Aug. 16 and wraps up Friday. Aug. 20. There will be a community barbeque where participants can get free food and talk about what they learned from their experiences on the final day.

Families, groups of friends and colleagues, and any individuals interested in supporting the Family Promise mission are encouraged to participate. There’s prizes for those with the most funds raised, groups with most participants, and individuals with the highest hours walked.

Bear said funds raised from Walk Across Wasilla will fuel their ongoing efforts supporting local homeless families and eventual expansions to their facility off Nelson Avenue. She said one of their main long-term goals looking forward includes the addition of a “family navigation center” which will provide them with the much-needed storage expansion, added beds for families in need, and help them continue expanding their overall case management services and onsite resources like an onsite gymnasium and so much more.

“One-stop-shop, that’s exactly what we’re looking for,” Bear said.

To sign up for the event, visit fpm-su.com/events.

Participants with pictures are encouraged to email them to walkwasilla21@gmail.com.

To order group or individual t-shirts or sweatshirts, mugs, and bags, visit bonfire.com/walk-across-wasilla.

Family Promise Mat-Su has been working around the clock to support local families in need throughout the pandemic. For more information about their services, call 907-357-6160 or visit familypromisematsu.org.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com