Western New Mexico University is hosting the 7th Annual James H. Pirtle Walk for Heroes, which starts and ends at Old James Stadium on Saturday, September 30.
This year’s participants will walk three miles around campus and through the historic downtown Silver City area then enjoy speakers and food together afterward.
Registration starts at 9:00 a.m. on the day of the event and costs $25 per person or $30 per couple. Registered participants will get a T-shirt and lunch. The remaining funds go to local charities.
While the walk began as a grueling and lightly attended trek along the highway between Hurley and Deming, it has evolved into a more community-focused event that benefits locals in need. The fundraising event also brings awareness to local military organizations such as the Vietnam Veterans Chapter 368, which co-sponsors the event.
Local veteran Mike Lopez founded the event and, along with his wife Liz, still organizes it today.
After a couple of long and invasive back surgeries, Mike was wheelchair bound for a time. While driving to see a doctor in Las Cruces, he had a moment of inspiration. “I told my wife I’m going to walk this road from Hurley to Deming one day. She looked at me like, ‘Yeah right.’ It took me about two years to start walking again, but I ended up doing it. We did it.”
Joining Mike on that first Walk For The Heroes were Marine Pete Masal; Vietnam veteran Wayne Brown; and Damon Martinez, who served in the Navy. Kay Beaman showed up with a picture of her son James H. Pirtle, who was killed in Afghanistan, and she requested the men carry the photo with them on the journey. Now, the Walk For Heroes is named in James H. Pirtle’s honor.
“It just started with veterans, but people would come up to us, and for one reason or another, they wanted to walk for their family member,” Mike says.
He opened the event to the community and started giving the registration donations to charities.
With 150 participants on average, the Walk raised about $3,000 last year. Mike hopes to raise at least as much during the 2017 walk. This year’s money will go toward buying baskets of food to give to those in need at Thanksgiving.
Mike hopes the Walk grows through its involvement with Western. “Dr. Shepard is really into the community. He’s trying to get his students out there in the community, too,” he said.
Holding the Walk at a centrally located institution in town will help increase involvement, too, Mike said. “Everybody who walks that day or helps in any way is a hero. If you help people in need, you’re basically a hero man. To me you are.”