Each June, the Flying Wallendas perform in St. Louis, MO with “Circus Flora” in a giant tent beside Powell Hall on Grand Avenue, the cite of performances of the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra. As I write today, concluding on Sun, June 28, 2015.
It was at the time of the USA’s War of Independence the first Wallendas, Tino Wallenda’s ancestors, was a traveling circus group!
And now Tino Wallenda utilizes his circus fame, skills and discipline as a means to honor his Lord, Jesus Christ. Here he shares with us from God’s word how to be forgiven, changed, and have the gift of the abundant and eternal life at the end of their act.
As a part of his witness and commitment takes him into prisons with the Bill Glass Ministries to share the life changing message of Jesus.
Much of the story of this remarkable “high wire” walking family … performing with many different circus acts … can be found at www.wallenda.com … which is where much of this information is derived.
Tino’s grandfather, Karl Wallenda, was born in 1905 in Germany. When Tino was age 7, Karl took him to the circus backyard and taught him how to balance a pole, place his feet, control his body, and focus his eyes
At age 12 he did high wire walking 35 feet in the air. At age 17 was a full member of the Flying Wallendas.
“It was during a promotional walk in San Juan, Puerto Rico, in March, 1978, that the patriarch of the Great Wallendas fell to his death at age 73. Not because of his age or capabilities, not because of the wind, but because of several misconnected guy ropes along the wire that had not been placed properly by the workers involved.
“Before Karl’s death, Tino did return to work under his grandfather’s leadership in recreating the 7-Person Pyramid … Wallenda troupe was in the northwest when the elder Wallenda ( in his 70:s) met with his untimely death in San Juan, Puerto.
“Some of the feats Tino has accomplished in his career on the wire are walking over lions, tigers and man eating sharks; walking between buildings, over rivers and a waterfall. His highest walk was 179 feet in the air over Denver and 3,300 feet in length.
“Tino’s wife Olinka, a native of Czechoslovakia, has proven herself to be an accomplished performer and aerialist. Descended from an honored and well-respected circus family, the Valla-Bertinis, she has excelled in a variety of circus arts including trapeze, unicycling, and balancing on her head on a trapeze as it spins and descends to the earth. She holds a record in the Guinness Book of Records for a unique walk she did upside down suspended only by her toes! Several years ago she was honored by a popular magazine as being one of the 100 Best Wives of All Time.”
Tino and Olinka’s four children are following in their parents footsteps … which also can be learned at www.wallenda.com.
For instance, two of their four children have each crossed … in 2008 and 2009
“ … the Hahn River in Seoul, Korea – An incredible 1-kilometer Skywalk! “