Former Sen. Lauren Book, the founder of Lauren’s Kids, is leading her annual 1,500-mile walk through Florida to bring awareness of survivors of sexual assault and child abuse.
A survivor herself, this is the 11th year that she will be leading the walk, starting in Key West on March 31 and ending on May 1 in Tallahassee. The group will be making a stop in Boca Raton on April 6, and the public is invited to join in for a portion of the walk as well as activities before hitting the pavement. The walk begins outside of Bloomingdale’s at Town Center mall at 8 a.m. with a five-mile walk to Sugar Sand Park and back. An Uber code will be provided for walkers to cover the cost of the ride.
“For 11 years, we have walked across Florida to shine a light on child sexual abuse and to remind survivors they are not alone,” Book said in a press release.
She shared with Boca magazine that she goes through four to five tennis shoes and plenty of blisters to complete the trek up the Florida coast.
New this year is The Voices Project, which records messages from survivors as they tell their stories. The recordings are kept anonymous and will be shared on LaurensKids.org as part of its Survivor Stories portal as well as an installation at the end of the walk.
“This living history project is designed to raise awareness, empower survivors, and educate the public about the realities of sexual violence: that anyone can be a victim or a perpetrator, that it’s okay to tell, and that healing is possible with access to free, confidential support services,” according to a press release from Lauren’s Kids.
For more information and to register, visit LaurensKidsWalk.org.
