On Friday, Cathleen and I headed back to Whites City after a good night's sleep in Carlsbad, NM. As we pulled up to the Whites City Post Office, old memories began to flood my mind.

I remembered picking up our General Delivery mail so many years ago. Mr. Jim McCain, who wrote the all original Star Free Press stories including last week's article, had published our Whites City general delivery address on the front page of our local paper in Ventura. It was two days before Christmas, and we had just hiked across the desolate stretch of highway between El Paso and Whites City/Carlsbad area.  Two inches of snow blanketed the ground around us and walking into the warm inviting Post Office of Whites City was something I'll never forget. The Post Master was Jodi Tapp. When Dad walked up to the window and inquired about if we had any mail, Ms. Tapp got this huge smile on her face and said, "I've never seen so much mail in General Delivery for anyone in my entire 12 years with the Postal Service! Who are you guys!?" We had received five inches thick of letters from people back home. Many of the letters were from people we had never met telling us to press on and not give up! Many people were praying for us. The paper had recently shared about our breakdown in Eastern Arizona where we almost quit the walk. People wanted us to keep going! It was so encouraging, and now there was no way I was going to quit this goal with my family! My Dad explained to her that we were walking across America as a family. I wrote in my account that Ms. Tapp made us Christmas peanut butter brittle. This gesture made us feel so at home and welcome.

Small town America has a heartfelt friendliness that is still present today. You just might have to work a little harder to find it. Today's tough economic times have hurt a lot of folks. People are less trusting and more cynical at times.  But underneath the scrapes and cuts of losing jobs, families divorcing, losing loved ones, and social media robbing the dinner table of family interaction, there lies dormant a memory of America's resolve to never give up and never surrender. America's greatness lies in the character of its people. I am ever hopeful that we will overcome these present challenges if we just place one foot in front of the other and not allow defeat and fear to dissuade us from pursuing our dreams. I thank God for this opportunity to visit America again.

Back at the Whites City Post Office, Vicki Wood, today's Post Master, greeted Cathleen and me with a big smile after I shared my "Walk" memories with her. She even took Cathleen and my picture in front of the Post Office.  Matlin Smith of the Carlsbad Current Argus newspaper used this picture in a great story she wrote about our current rediscovery of my "Walk."

Please see http://www.currentargus.com/ci_20720784/revisiting-long-walk-long-ago to view the article in Sunday's Carlsbad, NM newspaper.

Cathleen and I said a warm farewell to Vickie and her assistant Amy, and headed up to Carlsbad Caverns. My family had visited the cave on our cross-country trek. It was mid-afternoon and the entrance to the cave was closed. The ranger informed me that we could still go down the elevator until 5 PM for 6 dollars a piece. Compared to other National Park experiences, that's a bargain! Down in the caves, a magical world awaited. The Big Room in Carlsbad Caverns is so majestic! God's handy-work is everywhere, even deep within the ground.

After a 45 minute rush through the Big Room, Cathleen and I were rushing back to Whites City to mail my Dad, Mom and brother postcards of the cave. The post office was closed. I rushed next door to a general store that sold local area souvenirs and inquired about buying some stamps. The man at the counter said he thought they might have some. After checking several different drawers, he asked the and older man who looked to be the owner if they had any. He tersely replied, "No we don't carry stamps for everybody." At that moment a customer rushed over and said, "My daughter and I have some in the car! We were going to write some postcards as well! How many do you need?" I gave her a dollar and she handed over 3 postcard stamps. That was so cool!

After mailing the postcards, we were off to Snyder, Texas and the next stage of our rediscovery!

Nearing Whites City in December, 1986 with El Capitan in the background.

Covered in a blanket of snow in December, 1986. Whites City lives up to its name!

In the caverns, 1986

Talking with the current Whites City Post Master Vickie Wood

Vickie reading an old article about the U.S. Family Walk 

At the base of the Welcome to Carlsbad sign.

Gotta love those West Texas two lane road 75 mph speed limits.  I'm glad it was only 55 mph when my family walked!

Thursday we headed off route to the little historic town of Mesilla just south of Las Cruces. My wife Cathleen remembered a restaurant called La Posta that she had written an article on for her university's student-run magazine. Cathleen graduated from New Mexico State University in Las Cruces and so this brief intersection had my future wife living in the city we walked through on our coast to coast walk across the U.S. 25 years ago. The restaurant looked the same and the authentic Mexican food was superb. We split a lunch and it was enough for both us.

The town has a plaza that takes one back in time to the days of the Mexican old West and feels enchanting. We were informed by a passer-by that the town is indeed haunted. Dia de los Muertos themes were present in some business and I was surprised at how serious the stranger was. It reminded me of an episode from the 1980's cartoon, Scooby Doo. What's ghosts were haunting this town?

After a nice walk, we drove to crossing over the Rio Grande River, but instead of finding one of the most famous rivers in the U.S. or Mexico, we found a drive riverbed that stretched to the horizon. There was no water to be seen. Soon Cathleen and I were at the Texas border. We stopped for Cathleen to snap a picture of me at the Welcome to Texas sign.

During my family's "Walk," we had walked paralleling I-10 on Texas Hwy 20 through downtown El Paso. As we drove down Mesa St also Hwy 20, I was transported back in time and remembered the wonder of suddenly being amongst the tall buildings of downtown El Paso. We had been walking for weeks through wilderness and small towns since leaving Phoenix and the sensation was surreal.

Dad and Mom were informed by my grandparents that my Mom's younger brother Mark would be on business in El Paso. Uncle Mark was living in Mexico City at the time with his Mexican wife Laura. We would learn later that year that she was pregnant with their first child, Gabriella. Gaby was the first cousin that Aaron and I had on Mom's side of our family. I remarked in my journal that we spent a few days with Uncle Mark. He slept on the extra bed in our tent trailer at night and he drove to his convention in El Paso during the day. Uncle Mark had driven our whole family into Ciudad Juarez, Mexico across the International boarder from El Paso, TX. He had to check on a rental car or something. Drivers in that city were were wild. Cars swerved in front of other others and stopped suddenly with no warning. My Uncle Mark masterfully wove us through what appeared to be motor chaos. Crossing the boarder truly felt like being in another world. Today Juarez has the distinction of being the bloodiest city in Mexico with thousands killed by drug cartel violence every year. Uncle Mark brought us back into El Paso with ease and I was excited to be in another country.

After spending several days and more time than my parents had planned for for, we trudged eastward through the high desert of Western Texas. I wrote in my journal that we had walked to the little town of Cornudas, population 13. It was comprised as a cafe and store out in the middle of nowhere. May's Cafe served a "pretty good burger." On the restroom wall was a sign stating. "In this land of Sand and Sun, please don't flush for number one." The cafe had pictures of the many visitors to her cafe including President Ronald Reagan. The owner sadly recalled later that his photo had been stolen from under a glass table cover and she was saddened by that. May had opened the store in 1981 and we had been served by her in 1986! The cafe served ice cream by the scoop in those days. It still serves ice cream, but in pre-packaged ice cream sandwiches and bars. May had owned same place for 30 years! Cathleen and I enjoyed chatting briefly with her and a friendly Walmart truck driver. Then it was on  to Carlsbad for the night.  A few miles past El Capitan, the route takes us back into New Mexico.

The air quality was poor, most of it coming from Juarez and El Paso smog, as Cathleen and I continued our drive towards the Guadalupe Mountains National Park and El Capitan Peake, the highest point in Texas. We stopped to snap some photos. We soon were back in New Mexico driving through Whites City at the entrance to Carlsbad Caverns National Park before arriving for the night in the City of Carlsbad. Back in 1986, what was waiting for us in Whites City NM, truly amazed and encouraged my family to press on towards the goal.

On a special note, I would like to thank Rich Bolas of Your West Valley News for an insightful well written article and Dave Martinez for creative photography.

http://yourwestvalley.com/topstory/article_7eec2296-a684-11e1-b263-001a4bcf887a.html

At La Posta Restaurant

One of the haunting inhabitants

Plaza de Mesilla

Downtown Mesilla

Present day Rio Grande

Between Las Cruces and El Paso

Downtown El Paso

May's Cafe is a patriotic place! 

Friendly folks

Wisdom expressed over the front door in May's Cafe

In Cornudas, Tuesday is the day of rest.

Outside of May's

Below the Guadalupe Mountains of Texas

The mighty El Capitan

Suset over the Guadalupe Mountains

Wednesday found Cathleen and I driving by Tower Mobile & RV Park. Our family had stayed a week there during our Walk. That's because the people were kind and made us feel at home. There was a nice lounge with a fireplace. We enjoyed doing our homework in front of that fireplace and spending time there after a long day walking. Aaron and I had homework to do because in addition to walking, we had our 6th and 8th grades to complete in order to be on track upon our return to Ventura. I recall spending Thanksgiving at Tower. We had t-bone steaks instead of turkey. Everything else was just like a normal Thanksgiving Dinner. I ate two or three steaks, and I still had room for pumpkin pie! The RV park got a new piano during our stay, and my parents delighted the folks by playing old songs from the 20s and 30s. I have fond memories of that place. Aaron and I were adopted by several "grandparents."

Cathleen and I soon found ourselves in front of Our Lady of Guadalupe historical church in the little town of Soloman.  I recall being invited by an UPS delivery man named Frank to attend mass at this historic church founded in 1885. My parents were Protestant, and we had never been to mass.  Father Tom Warren warmly greeted the congregation and the "family that was walking across America." He said he knew Ventura well. He had served at Mission San Buenaventura and Our Lady of Assumption Church for five years in our hometown of Ventura having moved to Soloman's parish only one year prior! What were the odds. I wrote in my journal that the service could have been preached in any evangelical Protestant church. After the service, we stayed and enjoyed menudo with the parishioners. I don't care for that traditional Mexican soup too much.  But the fellowship was great, and I remember feeling warmly accepted.

On November 28, 1986, Dad and I dropped Mom and Aaron where we had left off the night before at mile marker 5.  It was a very cold morning with frost on the ground.  As Dad and I were driving ahead, we saw what appeared to be a dead man lying by the side of the road miles from the nearest town.  Dad slammed on the brakes, and we jumped out to investigate. As we stood over the body of a man, he suddenly jumped up asking us for a ride!  We about jumped out of skin!  He was a drifter.  Dad drove him 5 miles closer to Lordsburg so that he would not pose a threat to Mom and Aaron!  I gave him a dollar so he would have something to eat when he hitched a ride to Lordsburg. 

Within an hour, Cathleen and I had driven on and I posed in front of the "Welcome to New Mexico" sign complete with an old tire at its base with a beer bottle balanced on top.  Then it was on to the New Mexican town of Lordsburg.  None of our original accounts were too favorable about that town. We stayed there only one night before breaking camp and moving on to Deming, NM, a town famous for its annual "Duck" races.

Because we were routed on secondary highways, our maps had us walking up and through the historic mining town of Silver City, NM.  It's quite a a beautiful place, but it was 140 miles or an extra full week's walk in order to reach Las Cruces, NM.  Knowing that it is normally prohibited to walk interstate freeways, Dad had asked the New Mexico State Troopers if we could walk the section of I-10 between Lordsburg and Las Cruces. Permission was granted and so we walked the interstate for the next few days. It's a desolate stretch, but vast open spaces make for beautiful scenery. What was in store for us next?

Our Lady of Guadalupe Church

Suddenly an unconventional solution popped into my head. We could leap frog! Using a car, Dad would drop Mom and one or both of us boys at the place where we had left off the night before. He would then drive ahead 3 to 6 miles and park the car. At which point, he would walk back towards the place he had just left my Mom. Mom and us boys would walk towards the car now parked down the road. Dad would cross us in the middle and he would continue walking to where he had originally dropped Mom. Mom would continue walking to the car and then drive back to pick up Dad. Then we would drive on and walk another section in the same manner and so on and so forth until it was time to drive back to camp or our occasional motel. 

We would use CB radio walkie talkies for communication with each other and for potential emergencies. At first, my idea didn't seem too popular because the main purpose and joy was to walk together as a family  preferably from west to east. Seeing no other possible solution that would keep us all walking towards the goal, it was eventually decided that we would take a bus back to Phoenix and fly back to LA. Once back home in Ventura, we would get our car and retrieve our tent trailer from my grandparents. 

We could then drive back to eastern Arizona and continue our trek. Thus, we could still be walking every inch of the way across the U.S. Grandpa and Grandma would join us later in Spring of 1987 to allow us to walk the remaining miles together as a family. Our adventure could continue and our goal was now obtainable! We returned to the spot where we had stopped walking and began our leap frogging with the car at mile mark 269 on the Apache reservation.  Our walk now continued towards the goal of reaching the Atlantic ocean at Chesapeake Bay. 

Cathleen and I could see that conditions on the reservation seemed impoverished for many, despite the addition of the casino built in 1994. I could see that most of the tribal offices and services seemed to be modern and new. I wonder whether the casino has really improved the standard of living on the reservation though. We stopped at a convenience store adjacent to the casino.  I inquired about how we might find officer Diego Garza. Everyone was courteous, but no one seemed to know anything about him. Then a young woman behind the counter brightened and said, "There's a guy named Diego who works security over at the casino!" My heart lept as I felt our search for him might becoming to an end. How many people have the name Diego? This had to be him! I ran back to our car and excitedly told Cathleen what I had learned.

Once inside the casino, I rushed over to the information desk and enthusiastically explained that I was looking for Diego Garza.  A kind lady said, "There's just been a shift change. Let me see if he's still here." A few minutes later an older Apache gentleman in a security officer's uniform with a silver name-plate labeled Hooke approached. I briefly explained that I was retracing my family's adventure and that Diego Garza had been on the Apache Police force back in 1986. He got a far off look on his face and said with a smile, " I knew Diego well. I was a probation officer and we often worked together. He did a swap with another officer  a few years back and has moved east of Scottsdale, AZ." We shook hands and I thanked him for the information. He introduced himself as Wilmer Hooke. We exchanged business cards. I thanked him for the help, and I think that I'll be able to find him now. 

Cathleen and I got back in our car and continued towards Safford, AZ. It was getting towards sunset. As we continued to drive across the reservation, I remembered the terrain as if it had been yesterday. Once past the casino, hotel, and RV park, the reservation pretty much looked the same. It was very rugged land, but so beautiful with the shadows of the late afternoon. Soon we came to the "town" of Geronimo. It was little more than a bar 25 years ago and was located just outside of the reservation's boundary. I remember dozens of out-of-work Apache men hanging around in the middle of the day back in 1986. 

Now at sunset, I could see several windows broken out and doors off hinges. It now looked abandoned for many years. It seemed like such a haunting place! I thought of  Quentin Tarantino's movie "Dusk Till Dawn." Warning...Not a movie for the faint of heart. Racial slurs were spray painted on the building, and I could feel that it remains a dark place to this day. I noticed a newer "Dish Network" satellite  dish and a TV antenna. It seems like someone still inhabits that old place! Why they hadn't fixed the broken doors and windows or painted over the graffiti is a mystery, but they seemed to have the latest television reception capabilities. 

A half hour later, we were checking into our motel near Safford. The front-desk girl informed us that the Copper Steer Steakhouse would give us a discount if we mentioned the motel.  She said it was mesquite BBQ. I remember with fondness how good mesquite BBQ can be because we had stopped at many such places during the Walk. 

Cathleen and I headed over there and enjoyed splitting a rib-eye steak. It was still plenty of food for both of us! The waitress asked what we were doing in Safford, and my wife started to explain. The expression on Ashley Lynn's face was priceless! She couldn't believe that anyone would do that. We enjoyed her service, and she was genuinely friendly. The food was amazing! We really enjoyed our dinner, and I hope to eat there again someday. The owners are husband and wife Parrish and Maureen. I chatted with Maureen after our dinner, and she said that my family's story was inspiring. It warms my heart to be able to share the joy of our adventure with people I meet once again. 

The Apache Casino 

Flags flying out front of the casino.

On the reservation

Nearing the sunset

Apache Reservation Boundary

Good farmland just beyond the reservation

Present day Geronimo

A closer look 

Notice the satellite dish and tv antenna.

Historical Marker for Geronimo

Chatting with Ashley Lynn

Best BBQ in Safford!