Lindenwood University alumna Jennifer Fear ’87 is more than 1,200 miles into a 3,100-mile hike along the Continental Divide Trail. For Fear, this journey is more than a physical challenge. She is using the trek to raise $50,000 for Fearsome, the nonprofit she created to empower people living with multiple sclerosis.
Fear’s efforts grew from her own experience with multiple sclerosis. After being diagnosed in 2016, Fear lost function from the waist down. As she fought to regain mobility, hiking offered a way to reclaim her independence.
“I can either let this make my world shrink, or I can look at it as how do I take what’s happened to me and make it so that it can be a resource or a benefit or of help to someone else who may be going through the same thing,” Fear said.
Fearsome was launched prior to her journey through the Appalachian Trail. Fear knew she wanted to raise funds and awareness but sought ways to help those who have been affected by the disease. She recalled a recent client who was able to go outside for the first time in seven months because of equipment that Fearsome helped acquire and install. In 2023, Fear completed the Appalachian Trail with fellow alumnus Dave Tilden ’87, who now serves as president of Fearsome’s board.
Many of the relationships that shape Fear’s work began at Lindenwood. Three of Fearsome’s four board members are fellow Lindenwood alumni. “It’s really interesting circling back around all these years later and realize those experiences and that bond of coming through college together and then life together,” Fear said. “There’s still this sense of community that transitions from college to trail to disease.”
From Lindenwood through hiking and advocacy, Fear has found friendships and connections to be a constant source of inspiration. “You find that sense of community and that support is mentoring, encouragement, growth, resources, and knowledge,” Fear said. “There is no substitute for that sense of community.”
As Fear continues across the Continental Divide Trail, she leans on her Lindenwood experience, the relationships made, and the sense of possibility she felt as a student. Fear has made it her mission to extend that independence, support, and possibility to those who are affected by multiple sclerosis.