Highlands Elementary School teacher reaches final destination in cross-country bike ride for inclusive playground
APPLETON, Wis. (WFRV) – After setting out to raise the funds for improvements in the Highlands Elementary School’s all-inclusive playground, Zoa Thao and her husband, Shwa Lo, have pedaled 2,265 miles to San Francisco, California in 45 days.
“When I started out, I was thinking and envisioning, ‘Oh my goodness, how long will it take to get there,’ and now I’m finally here,” she exclaimed. “It is just an amazing feeling that we have accomplished this mission.”
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Zoa and her husband arrived to San Francisco on Wednesday, giving them time to relax and explore the Golden State.
“Since it took us 45 days to get to San Francisco, we’re planning to spend some time in the San Francisco area, and Sacramento area with family and friends.”
Whether it was the dessert heat, the flooding warnings, the uphill climb, or flat tires along the way, the path west was for Thao and Lo not without its difficulties.
“There were a lot of worries and a lot of challenges that we had to endure,” explained Thao. “The weather, the distance of the towns, and just sometimes not knowing where we’re going to sleep because we are so far away.”
Now that the their journey has come to and end, Zoa told Local 5’s Samantha Petters that it is hard to believe it is over but is thankful for the experience and the friends they have made across the country.
“It is very exciting, but bittersweet at the same time because we thoroughly enjoyed it even though we struggled through some parts of it,” she said. “Some days with all the up hills and thunder storms, we were not sure if we were able to continue, but yet, at the end, because of all of the kind-hearted people who have opened up their doors, and made this very enjoyable and memorable, it’s something that will last a lifetime for sure. Without all of you, this would not have been possible.”
Zoa still works to increase the accessibility of the current playground, add equipment including musical and sensory boards, and build a fully accessible, separate, fenced-in playground. The total amount needed for the next phase of the project is totaled to $41,000.
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“The work is still not done so we will continue to think about what we can do next to continue to raise some more money for the playground,” she stated.
On their Facebook page and YouTube channel, Zoa and Shwa have shared the number of miles they’ve traveled, beautiful photos, highlights, challenges from their journey.
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