150-mile walk for immigration reform to end in Tampa

TAMPA — More than 2,000 supporters of immigration reform are expected to gather in Tampa on Monday night to mark the end of a seven-day walk designed to draw attention to their cause.

Plans call for the group to meet at 7 p.m. at the Sacred Heart Catholic Church in downtown Tampa. Bishop Robert N. Lynch, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg, plans to join the group and lead a prayer service and candlelight vigil.

The group's efforts called, "The Way for Citizenship," are part of a campaign lead by PICO United Florida, a coalition of congregations, to influence immigration reform. For the last seven days, 11 people have participated in a 150-mile walk from Orlando to Tampa, making stops at churches along the way. The 11 walkers, known as pilgrims, are symbolic of the country's 11 million undocumented immigrants, organizers said.