Remember the Wilcox Family? They're almost done.
Brett and David (father and son) are the first father-teen son team to run across America. David will be the 2nd youngest to accomplish this feat... completing before his 16th birthday. Kris and Olivia (mom and daughter) are the support crew, driving the truck and camper, planning the itinerary, cooking the food, and shooting the film. They began in California in January and are now in western Pennsylvania. They ran an Indiegogo campaign last winter, hoping for more than $40,000... but when they only raised $8000, they decided to go ahead anyway.
My name is Owen Kindig. I'm just a friend of the Wilcoxes from their home town of Sitka, Alaska. I believe in what they are trying to do ... to call attention to the terrible ecological dangers of GMOs and the pesticides they implant directly inside the DNA of the plants and animals and insects of our ecosystem.
In the last 180 days, the Wilcoxes have spent $166 a day on this crusade. They have attracted attention all across America, have been interviewed by newspapers and even Dan Rather Productions, and spoke at Monsanto Headquarters in St. Louis on May 24 -- not inside, of course, but across the street at the March Against Monsanto.
During that same period of time, the Monsanto company has spent $16,000 a day, just in its efforts to lobby the U.S. Congress.
What the Wilcox Family Needs
They need operating cash, and they need help in paying off the loans they have taken out to take this vital message across the United States. The different gift levels will spell out the costs they need to recoup.
What You Get
Depending on your contribution, you get the satisfaction of knowing you are making a difference in the struggle to defeat these industry giants and their government allies.
Every dollar this campaign raises (beyond the small percentage kept by indiegogo) will directly pay off the costs of the journey. At one time a movie or book was hoped for as a by-product of the run. That seems unlikely at this point. Both Brett and Kris quit their jobs before the run began -- but the good news is that the health system where he worked has offered him his job back upon his return... so the family will have an income again when they get back to Sitka.
The Impact
In spite of their power in the halls of Congress and the courts, Monsanto and the other chemical companies who trade in environmental poison are going to lose in the long run. But the greatest joys come to those who work to fight and defeat these forces now, when real sacrifice and dedication are needed to warn our nation of these destructive, immediate perils.
Risks & Challenges
Power and money are on Monsanto's side. The only ones who love "terminator technology" are the ones who get their paycheck from it. There is a lot ridicule and conventional wisdom on the side of agribusiness and government. But in Vermont, the state has passed a GMO labeling law, and other states are considering the same. Monsanto is suing the state of Vermont but legal experts say the law and common sense are on the side of the people. The danger to bees is causing a major review of the poisons Monsanto and others use, which are linked to colony collapse disorder. In spite of the leading administrators of the Department of Agriculture being former Monsanto employees, scientists and activists and consumers are making a difference, slowing and even halting the spread of GMOs in the United States... just as they have been halted in Europe.
Other Ways You Can Help
If you can't contribute, please read about the topic, and speak up at every opportunity. Write an encouraging email to the Wilcoxes. Go to a March Against Monsanto rally. Carry a sign and talk to your neighbor.
Get the Buycott app, so that you can use your economic power to avoid buying the products that use GMO foods.
Thank you for your support! Help the Wilcoxes finish strong!
