To the Editor:

As the parents of Adam Williams, we wanted to do some clarification regarding the comment made in JT Leonard’s article ( “Local food fortifies Stowe school menu,” Nov. 27) that their trip across country was “basically a publicity stunt.”

Having watched Adam and Leah Heyman develop the concept of Food Cycle, and create a fundraising vehicle as well as plan and execute this crosscountry trip of 4,600 miles, was an amazing testament to setting a goal and achieving it.

For a full year, while each held down jobs, Adam and Leah researched routes and resources, communicated with local business owners as well as people from the school department, friends and acquaintances, local farmers and, through the magic of the Internet, people across the country. Fundraisers were held, friendships were made and, thanks to a lot of generous people and businesses, a fair amount of money was raised.

The plan was well conceived, well planned, and well executed. Their four-month trek across country was the culmination of their endeavors and not accompanied by a backup van or nice cozy hotel rooms every night.

There were many nights spent sleeping in a tent behind convenience stores, and sometimes in the homes of some very generous strangers. As we are all aware, there was record heat in the western part of this country this past summer. Bicycling through 100-plus-degree weather is a daunting task, at best. We have heard that there are a number of cyclists in our area that have made the trip across country so I am sure they will appreciate the difficulty of this venture.

As parents, we are proud and somewhat in awe of what these two have conceived and accomplished and are sincerely delighted that school children in our hometown will benefit from their efforts.

So did the trip help raise money? It certainly did. But was it a stunt? It certainly was not.

Skip and Anna Edgerley
Brunswick