Thank You!

Thank you so so much to everyone who has sponsored me. Over the last two weeks I’ve undertaken three challenges to raise money for two great causes – and thanks to my lovely friends, I raised almost $800 between the two.

Someone asked me why I take part in these events, and I guess the answer is because I can. I am so fortunate – plentiful food and water, a safe place to live, access to education and healthcare and so much that we so often take for granted – so I feel that the least I can do to show my gratitude is to pay it forward and help people who aren’t as blessed as me. It especially breaks my heart that so many girls and women in developing countries are denied all of these things, and especially the most fundamental necessity, of access to clean drinking water…

The first week I walked 65km as part of Care Australia’s Walk In Her Shoes, to help women and girls who have to walk an average of 6km every day to collect water and food and firewood. The money raised will provide these essential items close to home so that girls have more time for school, women can earn an income and together they can help their communities step out of poverty.

CARE Australia (www.care.org.au) is an international humanitarian aid organisation with a special focus on helping women and girls lift themselves and their communities out of poverty, and Walk In Her Shoes aims to raise money and awareness for projects that help break the cycle of poverty.

The second week I walked 72km as part of WaterAid’s Walk For Water Challenge.

And for both weeks I drank nothing but water as part of WaterAid’s Drink Water Challenge, where I made ‘just water’ my only beverage to raise money to help provide lifesaving safe water to others. This one was the most challenging for me, because I missed my cups of tea! But it was worth it – thanks to my awesome friends who sponsored me, I raised almost $360 for WaterAid for the water drinking challenge…

WaterAid Australia (www.wateraid.org/au) is a member of WaterAid, an international non governmental organisation whose mission is to transform the lives of the poorest and most marginalised people by improving access to safe water, sanitation and hygiene. WaterAid Australia coordinates and funds programmes in Cambodia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Timor-Leste, four of the poorest countries in the Asia-Pacific.