Peachtree City

resident Rebecca Stokes ran almost 100 miles and raised over $4,000 for

other kids who can't run.

Stokes and

her father, Don, drove Atlanta to Nauvoo, Ill., which is located on the

banks of the Mississippi River. From there Rebecca would run a 10K each

day while her father drove a golf cart. Their goal was to make it to Salt

Lake City, Utah for the Founders Day Race, a 10K race near the end of

July and their mission was to raise money for Hope House, a Children's

Respite Hospice in Union City.

Rebecca and

her dad had some amazing experiences as they covered 1,300 miles in three

weeks. When they kicked off their journey, a local television news crew

captured Rebecca's first run of the trek over a bridge. She was also honored

at a stock car race in Lincoln, Neb. where she called out the main event

and gave out the trophy, threw out the first pitch at a minor league baseball

game in Salt Lake City and was honored at Rodeo Finals at the Delta Center,

also in Salt Lake City.

The trail that

they followed is known as the Pioneer/Westward Emigration Trail and some

of Rebecca's ancestors most likely rode along that trail on their journey

westward. The sights that both of the Stokes took in as they made their

way to Utah included the Continental Divide, as well as parts of Iowa

and Wyoming. Though the trip had lots of beauty, temperatures did reach

ovewr 100 degrees, forcing Rebecca to run either early in the morning

or later in the evening.

The trek has

raised over $4,000 but there has not been a final tally yet as money continues

to come in from people that heard about Hope House during the Stokes'

journey. As for Rebecca's current running plans, she continues to run

three miles a day to reach her goal of running 1,000 miles by the end

of the year. She also plans on running cross country once the school year

starts. Rebecca runs with the Peachtree City Running Club, the Peachtree

City Flash youth track team and the Atlanta Track Club.

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