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Boy On Cross-Country Homeless Walk Nears Finish

SANTA MONICA (KNX 1070) — A 12-year-old Florida boy who has been walking across the nation for nearly six months to raise awareness of homeless children is set to reach the finish line Tuesday in Santa Monica.

Zach Bonner has walked nearly 2,500 miles from Tampa, Fla. in what he calls "March Across America" takes place.

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"There's an ancient Chinese proverb: `A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step,"' Bonner said. "Most people don't walk a thousand miles, or 2,500, but what it really means is that we all need to take that first step to get something big done. If I've helped even one homeless child, I hope I've accomplished that."

Bonner -- recipient of the President's Volunteer Service Award -- began the walk on Christmas Day, joined by his mother and brother.

Epic treks, however, aren't exactly foreign to Bonner: from 2007 to 2009, he walked from Tampa to Washington, D.C. in three phases in order to raise awareness for distressed children.

That 1,225-mile-long trek, "From My House to the White House," inspired a yet-to-be released film, according to publicist Emily Davis.

Zach's Tampa-based nonprofit organization, Little Red Wagon Foundation, creates projects to help struggling kids.

Zach began his efforts at age 6 by collecting bottled water to give to victims of Hurricane Charley in 2004.

(©2010 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)

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