Cold, Freezing, then Frozen!

        Day Three

       Today started off so far as any other morning with the walk.  After getting all their several layers of gear on and nourishing their bodies with a hefty breakfast, the fellas took to the pavement.  So far compared to the first two days the weather was at its coldest point.  Sleep described just how low the temperature dropped by stating,” It was so cold that it was hard for them to use their touch screen devices due to the thermal read from them not noticing their cold touch.”

       Although today’s’ challenge seemed to be with Mother Nature herself, the fellas still were able to push thru it and get some good interaction with the people.  Along their route they met a nice young lady by the name of Brenda Marie Richardson.  After explaining to Richardson the concept of the walk she felt honored to lend out a helping hand by escorting the men to a nearby Wal-Mart, to pick up some last minute items that were needed for the day. (VIDEO FOOTAGE CAN BE FOUND ON FACEBOOK #WalkofDreams)

        Shortly after the beautiful gesture by Brenda the guys completed a phone interview with Sheilah Belle from Prasie 104.7 with “The Belle Report.” (HUMBLE BEGINNINGS POST EXPLAINS THE SET UP)  The basis behind the interview was to expose the guys to the community and spread the word on what they were actually setting out to accomplish.  Tre expressed his appreciation by saying,  “I have  known her for a while and she has always been intelligent and alive, an all around great woman, I feel honored to be broadcasted on her show.”   After the interview was aired Belle gave out the guys contact information so that people could call and show them support and give some inspirational words to keep the guys motivated.  Immediately the guys’ phones were ringing off the hook, to the point where the battery life actually depleted earlier than normal.  People called them with prayers, words of wisdom, stories, and etc.  “We are truly grateful for this experience, while we are setting out to motivate the people, we are actually finding motivation from them also,” stated by Sleep.

       Later that night after reaching the checkpoint the fellas received a promising phone call from a mutual friend Jon (@lyrics_dad).  Jon had been promoting the movement all day by calling in radio stations, tweeting almost every hour about the campaign, and etc.  He called to inform the fellas that he actually had an interview set up with ipower 92.1 in the morning for them!  “There are a lot of people behind the scenes that are promoting this movement heavy and we are nonetheless very grateful for such great supporters and dreamers that are getting this put into place while we are walking,” modestly stated by Millz.  With an interview awaiting them early in the am they guys then took to bed, ready for another exhilarating day ahead.

CHECKPOINT REACHED: Stafford, VA

-Kristen @ladyKwright

Motivational Hills...

Day Two

The first day the fellas had a run in with hills, was on Day 2.  Most would assume this topic being important due to the evident physical challenge, but it actually went deeper than that.  Mentally everyone was faced with their own challenges within themselves.  Although, some would say the fellas are physically under conditioned, they seemed to believe it was the frame of mindset that they were in that needed to be better prepared.  Tre believed, “The hills represented the battles in life and what we are facing, dreams that are too farfetched and outlandish you are still able to conquer.”   In perspective Walk of Dreams is a living example.  While patting his chest excitedly he declared  “We came up w/ something like a “thought” a plan that was planned out, now it’s a reality “I’m wearing a shirt that says Walk Of Dreams, how crazy is this, I’m walking to NY!

With every optimistic progress it of course is followed by some form of negativity stemmed from somewhere.  In Millz’ eyes the whole purpose of this movement is to kill those pessimistic comments and instead give people the opportunity to go out and achieve their dreams.  “If you do it for yourself then of course you will encourage the next person.”  Negativity towards the movement is actually being viewed as something superior for the guys.  Whether there is good or bad talk about the movement, it’s all fine because there are still conversations surrounding it.

A simple stop at the Exxon gas station turned into something inspirational while also becoming motivational to the guys.  At the store they were somewhat taken in by the employees, by extending out what some would take for granted, as an actual memorable and humbling act of kindness given to the fellas.  They were able to use sockets around the facility and also were given food while taking a brief intermission from the actual walk.  While taking their break they had the opportunity to speak with an older gentleman about the actual cause, who was touched and also moved by the basis behind the movement.  He expressed that he was touched to see younger men actually taking the high road instead of being pulled into the low valleys of what a lot of African American men fall victim to a lot. 

After recharging both phone batteries and stomachs the walk continued.  Just as the fellas were approaching a steep hill, the same gentleman rode past them and honked while showing his appreciation of the motive by raising his fist in the air out his car window.  Tre summed his emotions up by stating, “ To see that gave me an energy boost out of nowhere.  The more people understand what we are doing the more they will respond and reach out to us.”

The overall experience for Day 2 was very motivational physically but more so mentally.  “Today we mentally experienced being taken out of our elements and not being scared to go to the next level because you know where it will get you,” perfectly explained by Sleep.  To him the physical challenge actually takes the back seat because every moment is worth it due to the actual cause behind it all.

CHECKPOINT REACHED: Fredericksburg, VA

-Kristen @ladyKwright



Humble Beginnings...

DAY ONE...
  "Everything happens for a reason," I am a firm believer of this saying.  January 1. 2011 did not start off on a good foot.  Everybody involved with the movement was suppose to link up at Saint Paul Baptist Church off Creighton Rd. in Richmond, VA by 9am for the first service, but that obviously did not happen.  So we finally pulled up to the church right before 1st service let out, WELP! looks like God had other plans for us, so 2nd service here we come.

The sermon preached by Senior Pastor, Dr. Lance Watson, was so POWERFUL, it touched all of our spirits in its own way.  After church Dewayne & Tre recieved word that the pastor wanted to speak with them before they departed.  While waiting to speak to the pastor, the guys were then introduced to one of the members of SPBC radio personality Sheilah Belle, from Praise 104.7 "The Belle Report."  After pitching "Walk of Dreams" to her she was immedietly on board, they exchanged contact info. (Which later led to a phoe interview on her show on Day 3.) 

Following that conversation, the pastor met up with the guys to give his blessing on the movement.

Meanwhile...Chris was missing in action somewhere in Richmond.  While the guys were inside speaking w/ the pastor WE (the Admin) were def on the phone trying to give him directions to get him to us.  Eventually we went to pick him up, due to GPS issues that he was having. We then dropped him off so that the JOURNEY that we have all grown to believe in could officially start!

#WalkofDreams

CHECKPOINT REACHED:Ashland, VA!!!

-Kristen @ladyKwright

Meet The Fellas...

(Left to Right: Millz, Tre, & Sleep)

********************************************************************

      "Walk of Dreams is a demand for attention and a call for our generation to get up and chase their dreams"

Christopher "Millz" Smith

     Birthdate: September 3, 1986

     Birthplace: Harlem, NY

     Raised: Bronx, NY and later moved to VA at the age of 15yrs old

     Musical Influences: Jay-Z* Nas* Big L*Big Pun*Busta Ryhmes*Notorious B.I.G.*Eminem*Lupe Fiasco

Interesting Fact:"I'm a comedian on the low"

    "Walk of Dreams is the will to live, rather the will to dream.  Its my birthchild so its apart of me, its my motivation to succeed"

Theodore "Tre Realz" Lee aka "Tre"

       Birthdate: October 8, 1985

       Hometown: Richmond, VA

       Favorite Artists: Common*Mos Def*Talib Kweli

      Words of Wisdom: "You can reach any plateau of life if you strive hard enough"

        

        "Walk of Dreams is to motivate and encourage anyone who has goal and dreams, by showing the world what measure we are willing to go to, to achieve our dreams."

Dewayne "Sleep" Callaham

      Birthdate: February 23, 1986

      Birthplace: Frankfurt, Germany but moved to VA in January of 2000

      Favorite Artists: Jay-Z*Eminem*Busta Ryhmes*Rahkim*Lupe Fiasco

     Interesting Fact: "I am an artist, the type of individual who believes there is no box, only the confinement of our minds."

NICGANG (Newest In Charge Group Accused of Negative Gestures)

            The group goes against the normal, daring to be different in a world based around conformity and stereotypical judgments.  Voicing that it is ok to do the right thing, not having to be afraid to follow your dreams is the main focus of these four young men.  Their look may give off the impression that they might be on the list of usual suspects but they definitely strive to go against all odds.

            The group consists of four young men from the Richmond, VA area.  Three original members: Christopher “Millie” Smith; Dewayne “Sleep” Callaham; and Theodore “Tre`Realz” Lee and one additional member Barry “Bace” Thomas.

            NIC’s musical influences collectively consist of HOV, Busta Rhymes, & Eminem.  Individually the groups’ other influences are: Lupe Fiasco, Ludacris, Common, Talib Kweli, Big Pun, Big L, and etc.  The members were all raised in the 90’s so that era is mainly the influences that molded them as a group.

           

“Our story is probably the same as a million other undiscovered artist, the difference is we have the mentality to make a difference in our community and in our worlds with our music, and we won’t stop until the world knows who NICGANG is.”

-Kristen @ladyKwright

December 7th

December 7, 2011 was the day that this idea first popped into Theodore Lee's head, and on January 1, 2012 three men took their first steps towards walking to Times Square from  Richmond, VA, self-named "Walk Of Dreams".  The movement stems from the idea that, "Everyone knows what the purpose of their life should be, but most cant juggle a dream with reality.  We tend to get caught up in everyday life and push our dreams to the back burner until we can get back to it, but nine times out ten we never do.  #WalkOfDreams is a campaign that is tailored towards everyone who ever dreamt but didn't execute their thoughts."

FOR YOUR DREAMS ASK YOURSELF HOW FAR WOULD YOU WALK???

-Kristen @ladyKwright