Back on the Trail: Williamsburg man to continue annual charity walk.

Bob Mahr will walk the 52-mile Virginia Capital Trail starting May 2 to raise funds for the Williamsburg House of Mercy; his walks in 2024 and 2025 have raised more than $16,000.

Bob Mahr plans to set out on his annual "Pilgrimage to Serve" on May 2, beginning at midnight in Richmond and walking to Jamestown along the Virginia Capital Trail. He started the walk in 2024 and says he was inspired by Presidents John F. Kennedy and Theodore Roosevelt. The purpose of the trek is to raise money for the Williamsburg House of Mercy, a local nonprofit that provides food, shelter, and support services. Mahr has used the walk to combine fundraising with a spiritual element of prayer and memory stones at each mile marker. Known details: - The walk is scheduled to begin May 2 at midnight in Richmond and covers about 52 miles to Jamestown. - The fundraiser benefits the Williamsburg House of Mercy, which operates a food pantry, soup kitchen, homeless day shelter and other support programs. - Mahr began the annual trek in 2024 and reports having raised over $16,000 across the 2024 and 2025 walks. - He invites members of the public to join for short segments and says participants can contact him for location updates during the route. - Mahr places memory stones and offers prayer and reflection at each mile marker as part of a spiritual element added last year. - He provides live updates during the walk on social media and plans a public gathering at Billsburg Brewery when he arrives, with an expected arrival around 6 p.m. Summary: The walk continues a personal tradition that combines fundraising, reflection and community participation, and it supports ongoing services for people in need in the Greater Williamsburg area. Organizers and Mahr plan to proceed with the May 2 trek as described, and a celebratory gathering is planned at the trail’s end in Jamestown. Undetermined at this time.