Jimmy Wayne Forced Inside During Cross-Country Trek

Posted by Amanda Duckworth on 01/06/2010
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As CountryHound reported yesterday, Jimmy Wayne set out on a 1,700-mile walk from Nashville to Pheonix on New Year's Day to raise funds and awareness for homeless teens. But 60 miles into his “Meet Me Halfway” journey, Wayne was stopped cold. According to The Boot, he awoke on Monday morning to find that the top and inside of his lightweight tent were layered with ice created from the moisture in his own breath! Concerned for his health and safety, Wayne’s management team decided to have him stay in a hotel in McEwen, Tenn., for the night. While Wayne said he “felt like a failure for not sleeping outside,” he knows his message is still getting across.
The motivation for Wayne’s trek came from his own personal experiences as a homeless teenager. He was eventually taken in by an older couple when he was struggling to make it on his own. 
Wayne also knew that taking on this challenge meant having to go without some of life's luxuries, but said he had to take such extreme measures in order to raise awareness for those kids who are getting ready to leave the foster system and have nowhere to go. Luckily, Wayne is being sponsored by Marmot who is providing him with durable clothing to stand up to the chilly weather. 
“They've given me some very, very good clothes to wear,” he said. “Under these conditions, there was no way I could survive if I didn't have the kind of stuff they gave me. And there's a lot of folks out there who don't have this. It's killing people, you know?"
If the weather conditions do get too cold to handle, Wayne is able to call for help on his cell phone. "If it gets that bad, I can just pick up the phone and say, 'Hey! I need some help.' So, I'm gonna continue doing it until I reach Arizona. One way or another I'm gonna get there. If I have to check into a hotel, I will. I'm just simulating, I'm not gonna die. I'm gonna try not to. I'm not gonna kill myself. I'm gonna walk, but if it gets so cold where I can't stand it, yes, I'm gonna check in and regroup."
So far Wayne’s efforts have gotten some big results. His record label, Valory Music Co., has donated $50,000 to the cause, while pal Dierks Bentley texted Wayne to tell him that he will be donating to HomeBase, located in Bentley’s hometown of Pheonix, to support the “Meet Me Halfway” campaign. Additionally, several fans have offered Wayne food, water and support along the way.
Wayne will be traveling to Memphis and then into Arkansas by way of Highway 70 over the next few weeks. Keep checking back to CountryHound to see the latest updates on Wayne's journey. You can also ckeck his Twitter pages or visit his official Web site to get more information on the project.