![\"3b1d93ec-2078-4584-aadd-d7fb0e4f2985.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/3b1d93ec-2078-4584-aadd-d7fb0e4f2985.jpg\")
<\/p>\nJim Hickey has spent years walking America\u2019s roads with a purpose.<\/p>\n
At 64, the Marine Corps infantry veteran logged more than 9,300 miles on foot – each step dedicated to children fighting cancer. His latest mission is for 7\u2011year\u2011old Lucy Dina, of Staten Island, who has been battling neuroblastoma since infancy.<\/p>\n
\u201cI decided that I was going to walk from the eastern end of Long Island to Staten Island, 100 miles, for her,\u201d Hickey said. \u201cTo raise awareness for her and her family and to help her in her cancer battle.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Photo courtesy of Lori Del Percio<\/p>\n
Hickey lives in the Bronx and is originally from New Jersey. He began his latest journey in Wading River, Long Island, making his way westward. His final destination will be the Curly Wolf Saloon on Staten Island, which will have a fundraiser for Lucy on April 19.<\/p>\n
Hickey\u2019s commitment to children with cancer began after losing his father to prostate cancer and nearly losing his brother months later.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat just did something to me and put me on the road,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
What started as an attempt to walk across the country evolved into a calling: dedicating each walk to a child fighting cancer and encouraging people to donate directly to families in need. He never accepts money himself.<\/p>\n
![\"100b6a51-7f5d-476f-9d13-b34203483b01.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/100b6a51-7f5d-476f-9d13-b34203483b01.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Photo courtesy of Lori Del Percio<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t take donations for cancer research. I don\u2019t take donations for the kids that I walk for. You want to help? You help them directly,” he said.<\/p>\n
Lucy\u2019s story reached Hickey through Facebook, where he often learns about children in need of support. The connection became personal when he discovered that he and Lucy\u2019s mother shared mutual friends. Lucy\u2019s family is facing more than medical bills; they are currently staying with relatives because of issues with their apartment. Hickey hopes his walk brings attention and help to their situation.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe\u2019s known nothing else,\u201d he said. \u201cShe hasn\u2019t known going to kindergarten like a normal kid\u2026 all she knows is hospital rooms and hospital beds.”<\/p>\n
![\"1bb19e01-6868-487c-b7cb-1d8aa8761898.jpg\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/1bb19e01-6868-487c-b7cb-1d8aa8761898.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
Photo courtesy of Lori Del Percio<\/p>\n
Hickey\u2019s mission became even more personal after he himself survived three cancers. In 2021, while walking across Nebraska for another child, he began experiencing symptoms that led to a diagnosis of kidney, bladder, and prostate cancer. He underwent multiple major surgeries, including the removal of his kidney, bladder, and prostate.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere was no way I was going to stop this,\u201d he said. \u201cNow it\u2019s more personal, because now I know what it feels like to have it and to battle it.\u201d<\/p>\n
So, Hickey continues walking, even with a heavy backpack. When the pain becomes intense, he looks at photos of the children he walks for. \u201cI tell myself, shut up, keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n
As he moves across Long Island, Hickey says the kindness of strangers is inspiring. Local hotels have offered him places to stay. Residents stop to share their own stories of loss and survival. One woman in Wading River told him he was the first person she had ever opened up to about losing her sister to cancer.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople are willing to talk to me about their battles\u2026 it\u2019s kind of a healing thing,\u201d he said. \u201cLong Island\u2019s been wonderful… The people have been so supportive.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hickey hopes his walk inspires others to help families like Lucy\u2019s.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you have a heart, please reach out… Or if there\u2019s another child in your area battling cancer\u2026 help them,\u201d he said. \u201cI don\u2019t know why, but I have to do it… Hopefully it means a lot to the families and the kids\u2026 that they\u2019re getting the help they need.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jim Hickey has spent years walking America\u2019s roads with a purpose. At 64, the Marine Corps infantry veteran…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":197322,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[9,24,63,134,136,135],"class_list":{"0":"post-197321","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-staten-island","8":"tag-new-york","9":"tag-new-york-city","10":"tag-nyc","11":"tag-staten-island","12":"tag-staten-island-headlines","13":"tag-staten-island-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197321","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=197321"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/197321\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/197322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=197321"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=197321"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=197321"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}