A walk to remember
MANILA, Philippines - Jean Beliveau has been walking for nine years. He has walked through 55 countries, starting from his native Canada and passing Colombia, Brazil, South Africa, Japan and most recently, Taiwan and the Philippines. He has walked 56,000 kilometers and worn out 40 pairs of shoes. He has been compared many times to Forrest Gump, except while Forrest ran because he didn’t know what else to do, Jean walks for a cause.
Give peace a chance
It started with a midlife crisis. It was the year 2000. Jean was 45 and didn’t know what to do with his life. But instead of buying a sports car, he gave up his neon sign business and, with $3,000, his buggy, a wheelbarrow-like contraption that he uses to hold his stuff and the support of his family, Jean set out to walk across the world to promote peace.
So far, the response to his endeavor has been overwhelming, with people from every country helping him with his cause. He was given food and money in America. In Chile, a company gave him a thousand dollars to help with his expenses. He had his prostate operated on in Algeria for free. The eyeglasses that he now wears were given to him in India. His plane ticket to Manila was paid for by people he met in Taiwan. “If I am here, it’s because thousands of people supported this crazy walker,” he says.
Jean Beliveau is tall and thin. He has wavy, salt-and-pepper hair and dresses somewhere between an intrepid explorer and an executive enjoying his weekend, sporting khakis, a crisp short-sleeved polo and sturdy shoes. His enthusiasm is infectious, even in the face of ever-changing cultural norms. “I am permanently in cultural shock,” he says. The hardest places he’s had to adapt to were Japan and Ethiopia, though the time he was almost attacked by a puma in Chile comes close. “I guess Canadian meat is not very good,” he concedes.
The children are the future
His visit to the Philippines was completely accidental. “I met a French guy in Taiwan who said I should look up his friend in Manila.”
That friend turned out to be Dominique Lemay, president of Virlanie Foundation.
Now in the Philippines, Jean has just walked from Pagudpod, Ilocos Norte, to Manila. It took him 20 days. His walk here benefits the children of Virlanie Foundation, the largest private, non-sectarian child-caring institution in Metro Manila. The Foundation has 12 homes that provide food, clothing, education and, most of all, love to its residents. Founded in 1992, Virlanie works to prevent the future physical and psychological abuse of children. It does this by providing developmental services for the kids to become productive, self-reliant and independent individuals.
At Virlanie, each house is run like a family, with a father, mother and aunts caring for the children. Special activities are also held, such as painting, which has both therapeutic effects and is an exercise to get children to focus on what they want their future to be. “We welcome children and fight for the right of the people,” says Lemay.
Helping Virlanie as a spokesperson is performer Billy Crawford, who has been the Foundation’s ambassador since last year. He’s visited homes and even performed with the children. He is elated to be able to use his talents for singing and dancing to help those in need. “It’s a good thing to be part of a charity. It’s for a good cause, especially if it’s for the street children,” he says. “A lot of charities will ask you for money. Virlanie asks for time to spend with these kids who need attention and love.”
This one’s for the children
This March 15, Jean Beliveau and Virlanie Foundation will be participating in a symbolic Walk for Peace for Children. The walk will begin at 7 a.m. It will start at Luneta Park, pass through Roxas Blvd. and end at the Liwasang Ullalim (Cultural Center of the Philippines grounds). Everyone is encouraged to join. The walk supports the United Nations’ proclamation 2001-2010 as the International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-violence for the Children of the World.
Afterwards, Jean will be heading to Cebu to resume his trek around the globe. “I might head to Cambodia or South Vietnam,” he says. He expects to complete his walk by 2011. By then, he will have walked 75,000 kilometers through 66 countries. And what does he plan to do after walking for more than a decade? “Spend time with my family.”
The only question that needs to be asked now is: Will you walk with Jean?
Contact Virlanie Foundation at
+632-8953460
+63920-9831442
www.virlanie.org Jean Beliveau www.wwwalk.org
