This small but dedicated group of walkers joined Rosemary and Ed Whelan (front row, center and right) in the James Foley Walk/Run in Manchester on Saturday. They walked to support the release of Paul Whelan, who has been wrongfully detained in Russia for nearly five years.

by Marsha Chartrand

“Despite the drizzle we had a very encouraging walk,” said Rosemary Whelan, who led the way for the James W. Foley Foundation Walk/Run on Saturday. “The lack of pedestrians, because of the wet weather forecast, meant that we had space to go inside most of the stores on Main Street. They were all very welcoming, chatted to us, and most took a poster.”

Unfortunately, due to political events in Washington, D.C., Representative Debbie Dingell was unable to attend at the last minute, even though she had flight reservations to come to Michigan to participate in the walk and show her support.

“She has been very gracious and kept in frequent touch with us,” Whelan said. “She called us this morning to let us know that she wouldn’t be able to make it and she was very sorry.”

The intrepid group of walkers started off and ended up at Randy and Betsy Baier’s home on Ann Arbor Hill, and fortunately the worst of the weather held off during their walk throughout town.

“We were welcomed at Betsy’s house by Randy, who had everything prepared for us to have warm drinks and tasty snacks,” Rosemary explained. “Our time there was very enjoyable and, as we hope that Paul will be home by (next year’s walk), we agreed to foregather with a place also laid for Paul. As we left their home, the skies opened and there was a huge downpour!”

As Rosemary and Ed stepped into their own home, the phone was ringing and, to their delight, they found that it was Paul calling.

“He and five or six Tajik cronies (Tajiks are a Persian-speaking Iranian ethnic group native to Central Asia, living primarily in Afghanistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan) had done their own one-mile walk around IK17,” Rosemary explained. “The Tajiks are very conscious of worldwide ‘wrongfully detained’ and asked to join Paul. It was ‘around and around in the small area, as Paul said the whole IK17 campus is no bigger than the Meijer parking lot on Ann Arbor–Saline Road.’ And they had to do it unobtrusively for secrecy.”

She added that Paul was pleased to hear about the Manchester Walk and the support that everyone had given to them.

“He asked us to say thank you very much,” Rosemary concluded. “This is an enormous thank you from Ed and me to all of you who took part in so many ways, on all levels. Every thought counted.”