| Thirty-mile walk to support Alexandra House |
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| Wednesday, 08 October 2008 | |||
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Staff writer
Although Schaenzer, who’s been known as Sarge since his high school days, completed his 30-mile “Sarge Marches for Alexandra House” in nine hours, 30 minutes, he took the journey’s first steps back in July. “I have often wondered if I could, and how long it would take, to walk from my home in Anoka to my parents’ home in St. Paul, which is roughly 30 miles. I began thinking about it more this summer as I was home from work for 20 weeks recovering from shoulder surgery,” he said. “I then began to think that if I were to undertake this venture, it would be nice if it were worth something, if it had some kind of purpose.” “My church, Cornerstone Church in Blaine, is a supporter of Alexandra House, and so that was on my mind.” “And then it was really laid on my heart to do this for them.”
First off, when would he stage the march for Alexandra House? Several factors led Sarge to choose Oct. 4 for the March. First, he needed some time to train for the odyssey. Second, Alexandra House’s Walk for Hope is scheduled for Oct. 11 and Sarge wanted to use his walk to promote that walk. (Alexandra House’s Walk for Hope takes place at Bunker Hills Regional Park. See sidebar for more information.) Third, October is National Domestic Abuse Awareness month. “Well, suffice it to say, these events all coming together seemed a bit more than coincidence to me,” Sarge said. “I decided to start training and committed myself to the walk.” After further research of the operations of Alexandra House revealed to him that the annual budget for the shelter is something like $2 million, Sarge chose $200,000 as a fund-raising goal for his march. The game plan to reach that goal had Sarge devising the idea of “finding 2,000 people to each recruit 10 people who would each donate $10, thereby achieving the $200,000 goal.” “Reality may say that this plan was a pipe dream, however, with God all things are possible,” Sarge said, stepping along East River Road and approaching the 20-mile mark on his 30-mile march Saturday afternoon. “I determined in my mind that the walk was successful even if it was only me and my $10 donation. If it can raise awareness about Alexandra House, then it’s been good.” At mid-afternoon last Saturday, as he paced his way into Coon Rapids, heading for Main Street and aiming for the George Green Park finish in Anoka, Sarge could see the end was near, although pledge reports were far from the $200,000 fund-raising goal. The latest Sarge March pledge report before his departure Saturday totaled only something like $300, but Sarge was confident that more pledges had been made directly to Alexandra House. “We wouldn’t be able to track those,” Sarge said. “We only have the support made directly to me, but it all goes to Alexandra House, so however people want to do it, it’s how it should be done.” Those wishing to support Sarge and his March for Alexandra House, can still do so by calling 1-866-695-4102. To pledge support online and to learn more about the march, visit www.truthdrivenllc.com/AlexandraHouse.html . For more information about Alexandra House, go to www.AlexandraHouse.org or call 763-780-2330. Although his march has ended, Sarge’s commitment to supporting Alexandra House has not. “I was taking a step of faith that I was doing what the Lord was leading me to do. Today, it’s over 50,000 steps on this walk, but that’s not the end of it. I’ll just keep my eyes and ears open and see where the Lord leads me next,” said Sarge. Sue Austreng is at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it |
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