Eddy Rodriguez, the South Florida bundle of happiness, is upping his game. Usually, the married father of five dresses as a bunny and makes people smile in Coral Gables, as when New Times Miami wrote about him, but on Sunday, he is embarking on a more strenuous mission -- walking from Deerfield Beach to Washington, D.C., where he will once again don his rabbit suit to further disseminate his message: "Happiness grows."
At 9:30 Sunday morning, Rodriguez is gathering people at Hillsboro Pier to kick off his journey. He's hoping that at least 100 people will join him for his first mile.
"If happiness is going to happen, it should come from [our nation's
capital]," Rodriguez says, "I think that happiness is really low on the
totem pole right now."
A support vehicle driven by a friend will accompany him as he walks more than
1,000 miles. Rodriguez plans on stopping in towns along the way,
contacting chambers of commerce, retirement homes, and any organizations
that may provide him with a captive audience to whom he can spread his
message of happiness.
One of his messages is to "gather people together and work together for a
common goal," so he hopes that people will join him to walk segments
along his way, pitch in as sponsors, and generally lend a hand with supplies and lodging.
When he reaches D.C., which he estimates will take about two months
depending on the stops he makes along the way, his dream is to stand in
front of the White House with President Obama and to have the president
say, "Smile and wave America; We love you," echoing the sentiments of Rodriguez's website, smilesandwaveamerica.com.
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