Widow Walks From NJ To Maine To Honor Husband Killed In Kayak Accident

A New Jersey woman has turned a tragedy into a pilgrimage. Her name is Jennifer Popper, and she is walking 900 miles to Downeast Maine to honor the memory of her husband, Michael, according to New England Cable News. He died two years ago when the couple went kayaking with a guide in Gouldsboro, Maine. NECN reports an unforeseen storm caused their boats to capsize. She survived; however, her husband and the guide, Ed Brackett, did not.

Jennifer Popper clung to her kayak for four and a half hours until she was rescued by the Coast Guard, as per a Maine Marine Patrol official via NECN. Now, her courage and stamina will take her from the East Coast Greenway trail in her home state to "the site of her husband's death to honor his love of hiking." That's 900 miles. Popper wants to complete her journey by August 1st.

Popper is also raising money for the East Coast Greenway trail and Freewalkers, a non-profit group that educates the public on the benefit of walking.