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Joe Bell, trains in March in La Grande for his two-year, 5,000-mile walk across the United States to promote an anti-bullying program in remembrance of his son. Jadin Bell, a gay La Grande High School sophomore, died Feb. 3 from injuries suffered from a suicide attempt on Jan. 19. Jadin's family and friends believe that he was driven to suicide by bullying.

(Chris Baxter/The Observer)

Joe Bell left La Grande in spring intending to make a two-year walk across America's belt line to raise awareness about the lasting effects of bullying.

But his mission grew, mile after mile, into a testimonial about sacrifice, the pain suicide leaves behind and the breadth of fatherly love.

It ended Wednesday evening when Bell, 48, was killed in the Colorado plains, about 1,000 miles into his 5,000-mile journey to share the painful story of his

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caused by a semi-truck driver who allegedly fell asleep behind the wheel, set off a flurry of reaction online, where Bell carefully cataloged his travels.

"I am sad that his journey ended before he was able to reach all of the people who needed to hear his life's story," said Jennifer Hamlin, 41, of West Richland, Wash. "In small-town America, it's still okay to bash gay people."

An Orlando man, Graham Adams, commented on Bell's Facebook page as the news spread: "How much heartache can one family suffer? Joe began a life changing legacy by embarking on this mission -- Now he & Jadin will be immortalized forever as a Father and Son whose tragic deaths will undoubtedly spearhead the much needed changes regarding bullying and acceptance."

Jadin Bell

In April, a few months after burying his son, Bell quit his job at a La Grande plywood plant and set off with the essentials -- two cell phones, a sleeping bag, a tent and good shoes. Jadin Bell had hanged himself in a La Grande schoolyard after his family said he was bullied relentlessly.

"I don't want Jadin's death to be in vain," Bell had said at the memorial for the boy. "I want it to stand for something. I think we need to look at people for who they are and not who we think they should be."

He planned to wend from eastern Oregon through Idaho, Utah, Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas to New York City, where Jadin dreamed of living one day.

The trek was daunting, not just because of his two artificial knees. There was weather to contend with, the time his three-wheeled cart was stolen and challenges finding a place to lay his head at night.

In July, Oprah Magazine highlighted Bell's walk as one of its

Bell spoke to a magazine reporter after walking 30 miles along a stretch of Interstate 84 in rural Idaho, describing plans to pause at schools and community centers along the route to share this lesson with those who bully: "The pain they cause is long-term."

A Facebook page,

, had more than 4,900 likes Thursday afternoon. It described Bell's effort at "walking across America to educate anyone who will listen about the lasting effects of bullying."

On it, he logged details of the walk. In recent weeks, Bell began uploading video diaries.

"I'm going through a tough time right now," he said into a cellphone camera on Sunday. "I'll get it straightened out by the time I get to Wichita."

"Thank you for everything and I'll keep on truckin," he said jauntily in another video.

Last Friday, he described bedding down beneath a bridge in Elizabeth, Colo. Bundled in a green parka as morning snow fell, he summed up the conditions: "I'm cold. I'm partially wet and miserable."

But he managed, in spite of the circumstances to affect those he met.

On Tuesday, the wife of a man Bell encountered took to the Facebook page to describe his effect on her husband, Tom Nestor, sheriff of Lincoln County, Colo.

"You are a true inspiration to him. He could not say enough good things about what you are doing and the cause you are doing it for. If we can be of any help during your journey, please let us know. We will continue to follow you on here. God Bless and Safe Travels," wrote Cheri Reichert-Nestor.

The sheriff had planned to invite Bell to stay with his family Wednesday night after Bell talked to a youth group. The sheriff was waiting for Bell to call him for a ride.

Instead, another call came through: news of the crash, Reichert-Nestor wrote.

Bell had been walking along the shoulder of a two-lane highway in rural Cheyenne County when he was hit.

The driver, Kenneth Raven, 49, of Bryan, Texas, may have fallen asleep at the wheel, the Colorado State Patrol reported. Raven, who wasn't injured, was cited for careless driving resulting in death, a misdemeanor.

Bell died along the road.

His final upload to the Facebook page came a few hours before the accident: a photo of a green highway sign marking 20 miles to Kit Carson, Colo.

Bell closed his post with these words: "Making headway, one step at a time."

-- Kimberly A.C. Wilson