The Elder Walk for Others has been a staple around the Price Hill community since it first started in 1975.  The purpose of the student body walking from a range of six to twelve miles is to helps kids attend Elder.

As listed on the elderhs.org website, 80% of the proceeds of the walk go towards tuition assistance and the other 20% go to charitable donations. The idea of the walk has not changed since it was first established, but the distance of it, that’s a different story.

The first ever walk in 1975 was a total of 20 miles!  This included not just the student body of over 1,000 kids, but this included children and students from grade schools and students from Mercy and Seton as well.

For five straight years the walk was 20 miles until in 1980 they decided to shorten it by eight and give us a nice 12 mile route. The twelve mile route is the length many alumni will remember because it was that same distance until 2017.

This year and last, because of the total collected by students, the walk was shortened in length.  These changes were suggested because Elder a fall car raffle. No matter has long the walk is the incentive of the walk is the same and that is to donate as much money as possible in order to help kids attend Elder.

Elder also hands out awards to the individuals who bring in certain amounts of money.  Awards range from a free walk t-shirt to gifts cards to even a personal free day of school. The student who raises the most of everyone in the whole school gets a plethora of things including gift cards, visa cards, and all the other prizes listed before.

This year’s student who just so happened to raise the most out of everyone just so happens to be senior Connor Johnson.

“If you would of told me I was going to be the top raiser for the school before the walk, I would have responded with you’re crazy,” stated Johnson in a recent interview. Johnson, a sibling of three, grew up in Delhi in a nice neighborhood and never thought he would gain the spotlight of such a prestigious event.

“Honestly it’s an honor to have raised the most because I know I’m doing the right thing for the kids at Elder and the incoming ones next year,” said Connor.

Connor found out the news the day before the walk and he was filled with joy knowing that the walk the next day would be like a victory lap for him.

“During the walk it felt like the scene in Rocky where he runs up the steps and puts up his hands once he gets to the top,” explained Johnson, “It was such a jubilant feeling for me.”

This accomplishment took many of the junior and senior class by surprise.

“To be honest I would of never guessed he would have been the top donater,” said neighbor of Connor, TJ Kearns, “he’s not really the most giving person.”

Johnson shocked the school with this amazing feat and as a friend of him, I’m proud of him.  It’s nice to see him go out of his way to help the kids of Elder become better men.