Rickshaw Man visits Franklin

Allie “Rickshaw Man” Stevens passed through Franklin Wednesday on his “Walk of Faith.” Allie and his dog Roxy are walking, with his rickshaw, across the country for three reasons. First, he is trying to set a world record for the longest rickshaw walk in the history of the world. He left Oceanside, Calif. on Sept. 13, 2009 and is trekking across the country to Miami, stopping at small towns along the way. The second reason for Allie’s journey is to increase breast cancer awareness. He lost both his wife and daughter to the disease and is himself a cancer survivor. Allie says his third reason for the trek is to prove to the world that America is still a wonderful place. The 59-year-old Vietnam veteran pulls his 400-pound rickshaw from town to town, meeting people and gathering stories. He has travelled more than 3,000 miles with the rickshaw he built himself. This is his second rickshaw. He said the first was destroyed when he was run over by a police officer in Tombstone, Arizona, and his dog was killed. Allie says the fact that he has been on the road this long, having left Oceanside without a dime in his pocket, and never having gone without a meal or a place to sleep, proves that America is a wonderful country. He will be staying in Franklin for about a week. Several locals stopped to meet Allie Wednesday to find out his story, including St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Dep. Brandon Blood, pictured at right above. To find out more about Allie and his story, visit his website at www.rickshawroadtrip.com.