Woman walks across country to end homelessness

LAKE WALES (FOX 13) - Some people get all tuckered out just walking around their neighborhood. Kim Denmark has logged in more than 5,400 miles over the last 9 years, and she keeps on trucking.

Denmark is walking across the country to bring attention to the plight of homeless people, especially veterans.

FOX 13 caught up with her walking from Winter Haven to Lake Wales on Friday. She has four grown kids back in Ohio, who worry about her, but they know she has a mission.

"I didn't understand when I was younger, but I do now.Mom, you're a hero to me. I hear it from all of them. So a shout out to my children," Denmark said.

Back in the day, Denmark had a staffing agency that took off. Money started rolling in.

"I didn't know how to handle it. It gave me power." She recounted. "This power allowed me to tell people, yes, no, get out of my face. It felt good, but it was superficial," she said.

Her vision for the future became crystal clear after a homeless man asked her for change, and she threw it at him. It ate away at her. She says she prayed and had an epiphany.

"This is my second chance. To be a servant to complete strangers," she said.

And so it started. A journey of the heart. So far she has walked through 16 states. All along the way, she encourages people to get involved and help a homeless veteran by connecting them with local services.

After walking across Polk County, Denmark plans to walk to Orlando, then to Tallahassee. To contact her, call (678) 818-9907.