Everybody’s business

The long walk home
A huge congrats to Randy Zachary (pictured), the Christian radio DJ and sports fan who dragged his not-so-fat-anymore you-know-what 350 miles to raise money for the needy in sub-Saharan Africa.

Starting Sept. 9, he walked in various SoCal locales and finished Oct. 19 with 12 hours (including six nonstop) on a treadmill and bike at Fit One Athletic Club, where he trained.

“When I got to that 40th day I said, ‘I want to push myself and see what I can do,’” Zachary said.

Zachary’s “40 days of purpose” was inspired by author Rick Warren and the money will go to Rock of Africa to help provide food, clothing, medicine, education about HIV/AIDS and more.

Zachary, who weighed in at 400 pounds when he started training, lost 47 pounds, and, in another victory, didn’t need a seatbelt extension on his flight home. (He also cut out sweets.)

His adventures, chronicled on a blog at www.walk4rock.org, included meeting a modern-day John the Baptist on the beach and getting kicked out of the Arco Arena parking lot “—not for wearing my Laker jersey (#34 O’Neal) … [but] for taking it off as requested.”

Zachary suspects some potential donors were tapped out by hurricane relief, but he still managed to raise at least $5,000.

Wildcat wares
The student-owned bookstore at Chico State is opening a shop at the Chico Mall for the holidays, and this year it will be in an actual storefront.

“We have a great location,” said Nancy Mantle, associate director of retail merchandise for the A.S. Bookstore. As opposed to the past two years, when Chico State set up shop in a kiosk and then a conference room, the “mall store” will be found in the former location of Cutlery Works, which moved to a new location in the mall.

It will be open from Nov. 1 to Dec. 24 and will feature gifts, Chico State clothing and local books.

Mantle said the shop is “not a huge moneymaker,” but rather “an added way to reach out to the community.”

If you are wise you will listen to me
Come Halloween, swing by S.T.A.R. Community Credit Union at 550 Salem St. and see a bunch of bankers dressed up as Oompa Loompas.

So, what does it take to make financial folks loosen up and go all Willy Wonka? Charity, that’s what.

Bank administrator Janet Earl (mom to former CN&R calendar editor Geoff Earl) sent us a press release saying she tried to hold out for “a T-shirt with ‘boo’ on it,” but then they came up with the idea to have a movie tie-in wherein credit union members can get a candy bar, and those with “golden tickets” get 10 bucks. Donations are being taken for supplies requested by a teacher at Little Chico Creek Elementary School.

Fleece the children
Hearthstone School is seeking donations of fleece for a good cause. The public charter school’s children plan to make blankets and sleeping bags for children affected by the earthquake in Pakistan and Kashmir regions.

Contact Melanie O’Connor, enrichment and resource coordinator, at 532-5848 ex. 165 or moconnor@bcoe.org for more information.

I happened to notice that fleece is on sale for $3.99 a yard at Joann’s Fabrics.