Western Nevada native Zach Harris and Maverick Baker with the Cortez family in March 2023 in a Columbian neighborhood. Harris said the structure behind them is the living quarters the family lived in before they built a permanent structure for them out of brick.
On Sept. 3, 23-year-old Western Nevada native Zach Harris will begin to pedal more than 4,200 miles across America with a goal to raise $23.78 per mile for homeless Colombian families.
Harris grew up in Kings Canyon Carson City and is a 2018 Carson High School graduate, but he said he also grew up with connections to Douglas County.
“My dad worked in Minden and I did too for a time, so I consider myself a local to both,” he said. “I have connections in both towns, so I just wanted to reach both areas and spread awareness to what I am doing.”
Harris’ journey began after graduating from the University of San Diego in 2021 where he majored in environmental science theology.
After graduation, Harris traveled to Colombia South America where he met some people who lived in some of the roughest parts of the neighborhoods and learned that an average of 662,146 Colombian families experience homelessness and many fight for survival in slums that lack humane living conditions.
“The poverty was just shocking,” said Harris. “We basically just took to social media and raised around $6,000 and were able to build bathrooms, give them food and better structures to live in.”
Harris said he returned to Columbia in March with a friend and between the two of them they raised $10,000.
“It was very moving to see how far just a little bit of money can go down there,” he said.
“Among these families were many children whose lives were forever transformed. Any lack of hope was replaced by an optimistic outlook in their futures, thanks to a safe and secure place to call home.”
Since visiting the slums, Harris said he cannot sit idly by as more children and families suffer.
In effort to reach his goal of $100,000, Harris is biking from Heceta Beach, OR to Yorktown, Virginia as part of a ‘Bike Across America’ fundraiser following the TransAmerica Bike Route.
He plans to bike at least 70 miles a day, taking him about a month to reach the east coast.
Harris set up a gofundme account to collect donations for the cause and said 100 percent of fundraising efforts will go directly to the Colombian people.
“Should the goal of this fundraiser be met, hundreds of people will be taken off the street and moved into permanent and secure housing.”
Harris said one way to donate is to sponsor a mile.
“To reach our goal of $100,000, each of the 4,205 miles I will be biking is ‘worth’ $23.78. he said. “Any gift can make a difference. When you give, you’re not only changing hundreds of lives in one of the most impactful ways possible, but you’re changing the reality for future generations as well.”
Visit https://gofund.me/a5f952db to make a donation. To follow Harris’ journey across America, connect with him on social media platforms including, Zachary Harris-Youtube, Zach Harris on Facebook and ZachAcrossAmerica on Tik Tok.
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