73-year-old cyclist nears finish of cross-country ride for No Kid Hungry

Mark Strauss is set to finish a 3,300-mile bike ride on June 23 in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware, after starting on his 73rd birthday in California. The effort has already raised more than $600,000 for No Kid Hungry, with a $1 million goal aimed at fighting childhood hunger. Why it matters: - Strauss’s ride has already raised more than $600,000 for No Kid Hungry, moving the campaign more than halfway to its $1 million target. - The fundraising total translates to an estimated 10 million meals, according to the ride’s stated goal. - No Kid Hungry works to help feed the nearly 14 million children in the U.S. who go to bed hungry on any given night. What happened: - Mark Strauss is scheduled to finish a 3,300-mile coast-to-coast bicycle ride on June 23 at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. - The ride began on April 17 in Corona del Mar, California, on Strauss’s 73rd birthday. - Strauss has spent 68 days on the road and crossed 13 states plus Washington, D.C. - He started at the Pacific Ocean and is set to dip his front wheel into the Atlantic Ocean at the finish. The details: - Strauss is a managing director in capital markets at Walker & Dunlop and lives in Corona del Mar, California. - His support crew includes his wife, Karen Strauss, and Scott Lampman, who serves as bike and body mechanic and driver. - Friends and family have joined Strauss along parts of the route. - Strauss has ridden through the deserts of the Southwest, the farmland of the Midwest and the climbs of the Appalachians. - He has documented the trip on the No Kid Hungry Ride blog . - He has stopped to meet local hunger-relief partners, including the Children’s Hunger Alliance in Ohio, the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank and the food and nutrition department of the Caroline County public school system in Maryland. - The ride has received local coverage from News 10 in Amarillo, The Oklahoman in Oklahoma City, WTHI-TV in Terre Haute, Indiana, and WTRF in Wheeling, West Virginia. - Communities along the route have met Strauss, escorted him through construction zones and donated to the cause. - The ride crossed the $600,000 fundraising mark in Pittsburgh on June 14. - With about a week left, Strauss and his team plan to ride through Harpers Ferry, West Virginia; Washington, D.C.; Annapolis, Maryland; and across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge before reaching the coast. - No Kid Hungry funds school breakfasts and after-school meal programs, summer and emergency meals, SNAP outreach and policy advocacy. Between the lines: - Strauss’s effort has become both a fundraiser and a public awareness campaign for childhood hunger. - Organizers say the ride is one of the largest individual cycling fundraisers the organization has seen. - The journey has drawn national attention, local TV coverage and strong community support along the way. - Strauss’s mantra has been a James Baldwin quote: “These are all our children, we will either profit by or pay for whatever they become.” What’s next: - Strauss is on pace to finish on Tuesday, June 23, at Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. - Media interested in the finish or in updated fundraising totals can contact Karen Strauss at 949-981-8311. - Donations can be made through the ride’s fundraising page . - Updates, photos and daily blog posts are available on the ride blog and on Instagram at @nokidhungryride . The bottom line: - Strauss’s cross-country ride has turned a personal endurance challenge into a high-profile push to fight childhood hunger, with the finish line and final fundraising push still ahead.