Last year, it was a 14 year old boy named Clayton Giles who bicycled 3,600 miles from his hometown of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to Washington, D.C., via dozens of towns and cities along the way.  This year, it is “Kayak Jack,” a 50 year old Newport, KY resident who is going down the Ohio River to the Mississippi Rover to the Gulf of Mexico and then north in the Atlantic Ocean to Washington.  A disabled veteran, Clark began his marathon rowing expedition as a positive outlet for his anger and as a way to protest how he believes courts handle child custody cases.  Clark lost his daughter in a child custody dispute with his ex-wife two years ago and since then has been in court over child access issues.  “We need a more balanced approach to custody and divorce,” Clark said.  “the CRC motto is ’The Best Parent is Both Parents.’”

To complete his voyage, Clark will have to overcome more obstacles than geography. He has only one leg, sleep apnea, high blood pressure and sugar diabetes.  Along the way, Clark visits people and newspapers and asks them to write letter to members of Congress supporting his cause or articles about his water-crusade.   “I can’t meet anyone who doesn’t have some horror story,” he said.  In the tiny-one-person boat, Clark carries one day’s supply of food, a cellular telephone, documents supporting his cause, a tent, a heater and an electric blanket. Some of his stuff has been stolen.
www.gocrc.com will serve as a clearinghouse of information about Kayak Jack.
 

Anyone who would like to help with a tax-deductible contribution should send it to 

Children’s Rights Council, 
300 “I” Street N.E., Suite 401, Washington, D.C. 20002.

Let us know that you want the funds to go to Kayak Jack.  Payments via MC, Visa, or AMEX are also acceptable.  Phone CRC at 202-547-6227.
To learn more about Kayak Jack, contact Ann Swango, CRC of Kentucky, at annswango@hotmail.com  or Harry Prillaman, CRC of Georgia, at ppilla@us.ibm.com
 
A portion of the above article is from Ronald Hawkins UPI article, rhawkins@madisconcourier.com