5 questions with Wonder Walker
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Wonder Walker, also known as Nick Inman, will be the co-host for the Miss LifeWalk Pageant on Sunday, June 24. The pageant will be at 8 p.m. at the Round Up Saloon. It is one event, in a series over the year, to raise awareness for LifeWalk on Oct. 14 at Lee Park.
How did you, personally, get involved with LifeWalk?
I just decided to walk with some friends one year. I thought it would be fun. I think I raised a few hundred dollars my first year. The next year I was recognized as one of the top five individual fundraisers at the wrap-up party, and I accepted an invitation to join the steering committee in 2003. I was immediately impressed by the dedication and support of the members of the steering committee.
What is the importance of LifeWalk?
LifeWalk is the largest fundraising event for AIDS Arms Inc. In 2006, LifeWalk raised $342,000. Our goal this year is $350,000. Every year LifeWalk grows. We had 5,000 people in 2006. It is always a diverse crowd, representing a broad cross section of our community as a whole. It provides a family and pet-friendly environment, supportive of community diversity.
Describe the conception and birth of Wonder Walker?
In 2003, my first year on the steering committee, we went to Gay Bingo at the LakeWood Theatre to recruit support for LifeWalk. We set up a table where we gave out T-shirts, registration materials and information about LifeWalk. As you know, every GayBingo has a theme; that month it was superheroes. So, I created a superhero for LifeWalk, aka Wonder Walker. Everyone loved it! Then they asked me to be on the LifeWalk Float in the Pride parade. The next year we started the Miss LifeWalk Pageant, which I didn’t win.
Does Wonder Walker have super powers?
Living with HIV, every day is a battle. So far, I’m winning with the help of AIDS Arms. As the first HIV-positive super hero, Wonder Walker teaches us that no one is invincible. She defies normal perceptions of strength. Being HIV-positive does not make her weak, living with HIV makes her a superhero. Wonder Walker advocates a healthier lifestyle through physical fitness, including LifeWalk. She continues to help our community fight HIV/AIDS with strength and compassion. I hope that Wonder Walker can help create a more positive image for people living with HIV/AIDS.
If you had a superhero like Wonder Walker when you were growing up, what difference would it have made in you?
My mother would never have been able to get me out of that costume, and I would have stopped hiding my Barbie dolls.
Soundout is a weekly column featuring people whose jobs and interests have an impact on the daily lives of members of the LGBT community. It features those who often go unnoticed by the press and community. If you’d like to recommend someone to cover in this column, contact staff writer Ben Briscoe at briscoe@dallasvoice.com.
This article appeared in the Dallas Voice print edition, June 22, 2007.