Sammuel Messlein, a Memphis 10-year-old, has begun the journey of his young life since he started a walk across Tennessee on June 8. His walk will be an adventure, a learning experience and an opportunity to raise awareness for Camp Horizon, the American Cancer Society’s summer camp for children diagnosed with cancer.
“Camp Horizon is where kids with cancer go to have fun,” Samm said when asked why he chose Camp Horizon. His parents donated to Camp Horizon through the Rusty Rails Memorial Fund. Samm also has a personal connection to the disease; a 6-year-old cousin died of neuroblastoma in 1998. Samm will be joined on the walk by his mom, Tammy.
They plan to walk for about eight hours a day, starting at 6 a.m. “We want to walk in the coolest, most visible time of the day,” Tammy said.
They will walk through July 3, and will spend the Fourth of July holiday in Bristol. Samm’s dad, Joe, will join them there before the family heads out to hike the waterfalls in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Before starting out, Samm and Tammy trained by walking as many as 10 miles a day. They have trained in all kinds of weather in preparation for whatever Mother Nature throws their way.
While on the road Samm will continue his homeschooling and will learn a lot about Tennessee. He and Tammy also plan to do some sightseeing and will meet Gov. Phil Bredesen for a photo opportunity while trekking through Nashville. They also stopped and visited Camp Horizon, which was held near Nashville June 15-21 for children with cancer and June 22-28 for siblings of children with cancer.
Samm says he hopes one day to attend Annapolis. He wants to be a Naval fighter jet pilot, a CIA agent and maybe President of the United States. He has two dogs and five cats, and enjoys baseball, karate, piano, Boy Scouts and bowling.

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