Mother/Daughters Hiking Team: Bonnie, Ruth and Diana Elozory

We are the mother and 2 daughters Hiking team called The Florida Flip Floppers. I am the mom with the trail name CoMOMdo, 50 yrs old and traveling with the first Chinese born persons to ever thru hike the AT, my adopted daughters, Badonkadonk, age 17 and Cubby age 12.

We thru hiked the AT in 2013. We were totally and absolutely inspired by Grandma Gatewood. I read any and everything written by women or about women hikers. We used to call out "if Grandma Gatewood could do it so can we". It was like our war cry!

When we got back we went to a book signing her relative wrote about her. He thrilled my girls when he told them he'd heard of them and that they would make GG so proud. While hiking we stopped at any place that had a story or an artifact of hers. We stared at her converse tennis shoes, hand sewn bag and blankets. We marveled at how she did so much with so little. We relished every tidbit we heard about her.

I tell everyone that I'm so happy that my girls heroes are Grandma Gatewood and Jennifer Pharr Davis and not the Kardashians or Beyoncé or some pop celebrity but rather real women with real problems who were brave and strong and out to find peace and resolution through Nature.

They will carry a place of awe and love and respect for Grandma Gatewood for the rest of their lives. She made our journey a possibility. We literally followed in her footsteps, healing ourselves and learning that we are strong and determined women that can accomplish anything we set our minds too. We talk about just because life doesn't always go like we want we can't give up
on it or our dreams.

We adore GG!

We hiked from May 27 until December 7, 2014. We flip flopped the trail. We started in the southern point of the Shenandoah NP and headed North. We flipped in one weekend and drove back to SNP and headed South to Springer. It was a psychological boost for us as we headed towards home
(Florida) and also experienced my girls first real autumn.

Call or write if we can help the project in any way.

-- Bonnie, Ruth, and Diana Elozory

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