Am hugely jet lagged and there will be a full holiday report (probably made up of about three lines) soon. But in the meantime, here’s the serious post. I’m not doing this for fun or enjoyment (clearly), but to help raise money for an absolutely phenomenal charity. Afrikids does an incredible job of making life better for thousands of children in Ghana – by giving communities resources and help to bring about lasting change. It is an award winning and incredibly successful charity, but remains very small and personally driven by truly inspiring individuals. I’m am very proud to be on their team.
And here is what the other team members have to say:
Lissa –
For 2 months now, I’ve been telling people every day that I’ll be spending the evening in training for the 10k. I haven’t been for a run once, and that includes running for a bus, running to catch up with the ice cream van or running to get away from the big dog that resides at number 18. This is basically due to laziness and fear. Having been working for AfriKids for nearly 10 months now, I felt it was time to do something more. This inspiration stems from the passion flowing out of the staff in Ghana. They go above and beyond the call of duty every day to make sure all of AfriKids’ beneficiaries are living a safe, healthy and happy life; I hope this 10k shows them how much we appreciate all that they do.
Andy-
I bracket distance running along with street licking and oil drinking in the list of things I’d like to do and I generally think of those who engage in it through choice as a mildly sadistic. However, if there’s any good reason at all for engaging in this joint bashing, chaffing experiment it would be for AfriKids. My inspiration (or reason that I couldn’t say no) is our all local team of 120 AfriKids Ghana staff, they regularly work through blistering heat, over treacherous terrain and for extremely long hours to ensure that every penny raised in the UK has a huge impact in changing the lives of children in their communities. It helps in the ‘training’ knowing that 90p in every pound we raise will be going directly to make this incredible group of people’s work possible. My basic target is not to humiliate myself on the day but if anyone wants to sponsor me per minute under 60 that I manage to finish in, I’m sure I’ll sweat my way round that little bit quicker; £2 per minute anyone (don’t worry there won’t be many minutes under 60, if any)?
Sally-
I am taking part in this 10k partly because the Kakaad conspiracy to get me running has finally worn me down after three long years, partly because AfriKids like all charities is going through a difficult period and we all have to go the extra mile to ensure the projects keep running, but mainly as a tribute to all the fantastic and challenging things people do for AfriKids each year. A 10k may not seem the biggest challenge to some people but trust me, to me it is- I cannot stand running and can’t think of something I want to do less than trudge around London’s streets on a Sunday morning every week between now and the 25th when I could be asleep in bed! So as I drag myself through the training muttering bitterly about perky sporting types, I shall be thinking of everyone who finds the time energy and commitment in their busy lives to do a bit extra for those incredible people and projects in northern Ghana, and if you’ve not done your bit for AfriKids yet this year why not sponsor us and make all that pain a bit more worth it!
Liam-
Having recently made my first trip to Ghana, the staff and beneficiaries of AfriKids Ghana are my inspiration and motivation for this run. However, it seems that there’s nothing I can do to find to find inspiration or motivation to actually train for the run. My training has so far consisted of drinking less, eating (a little) less, and going to the gym once back in February. If pushed for a time, I’d say I’d like to finish in under an hour and a half. In all honesty, I’d simply like to be able finish the run alive.
You can sponsor us at http://www.justgiving.com/afrikids10k
And learn more about afrikids at www.afrikids.org
