Walking 4 wheels: Sponsor a mile
Donation protected
I am hiking from Mexico to Canada to raise awareness and funds to contribute towards purchasing a wheelchair accessible bus for the Vanuatu Society for People with Disability (VSPD) .
In a few weeks I will finish almost 3 years of volunteering at the Vanuatu Society for People with Disability (VSPD). I can’t begin to describe the impact that VSPD’s staff and clients have had on me, so I am not even going to try, other than to say I will never be the same.
Before I leave my island home and VSPD family, there is one last thing I would like to try to do, and that is to help VSPD to raise the funding required to purchase a WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE BUS. You can learn more about VSPD's appeal for a wheelchair accessible bus by watching this VIDEO.
I have seen first-hand the challenges that people with disabilities, particularly wheelchair users, face every day in VANUATU when they try to go anywhere, even in their own communities and towns. People either never leave their home due to shame and inaccessibility, or when they do, they face discrimination from bus drivers or indignities when being lifted into and out of a bus. Until very recently, there has never been a wheelchair accessible vehicle in Vanuatu. Even now there is only one privately owned accessible van that operates in Port Vila at a higher rate than the standard 150 vatu which is already a steep price to pay for people with disabilities who, more often than not, have no source of income.
I really NEED YOUR HELP to raise money to contribute towards purchasing a wheelchair accessible bus that VSPD could use to transport it's clients to take part in many activities that they would otherwise miss out on, simply because they can’t get there. This will have an incredibly positive impact on the lives of wheelchair users in Vanuatu. However, an accessible bus is NOT CHEAP, especially considering that it needs to be left hand drive and also the cost to get it shipped to Vanuatu.
On April 12th, I will start walking 4,265 KILOMETERS (2,659 MILES) from Mexico to Canada along the Pacific Crest Trail in the United States of America. To put this in perspective, that is like walking from Sydney to Perth (and then some) or walking around the island of Efate in Vanuatu 34 times. The trail starts in the desert, crosses over 57 major mountain passes, 19 major canyons and passes more than 1000 lakes. It goes through 3 states, 5 national monuments, 6 national parks, and 48 federal wilderness areas. Assuming I don’t get eaten by a bear (jokes mum!) I should finish after 5 months.
My initial target was $2,650 (AUD), the number of miles I will be walking, but we smashed that target in under 48 hours. My next target was $4,265, the number of kilometres. But within only a week, we had reached over $5,600!!! My current target is $10,000. If we can reach this target, then I will continue to raise our target until we get as close as possible to our goal of $50,000 (AUD), which is our conservative estimate of the cost to purchase a wheelchair accessible bus and have it shipped to Vanuatu.
PLEASE DONATE AND SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES!
For those people living in Vanuatu who wish to donate in the local currency, I am collecting cash in an ambitiously large tin at the VSPD office (opposite Collardeau School) and you can also transfer directly to the VSPD Bank Account:
Account Name: Vanuatu Society for Disabled People
Bank and Address: ANZ Bank (Van) Ltd, Port Vila, Vanuatu
BSB: 010-982
Account Number: 1761703
Swift Code: ANZBVUVX
Transaction reference: Walking4Wheels
I’m not very good at social media but I will do my absolute best to keep you all updated on my progress throughout! Follow me on Instagram (Walking_4_Wheels) and Facebook!
WISH ME LUCK!!!
Matthew
In a few weeks I will finish almost 3 years of volunteering at the Vanuatu Society for People with Disability (VSPD). I can’t begin to describe the impact that VSPD’s staff and clients have had on me, so I am not even going to try, other than to say I will never be the same.
Before I leave my island home and VSPD family, there is one last thing I would like to try to do, and that is to help VSPD to raise the funding required to purchase a WHEELCHAIR ACCESSIBLE BUS. You can learn more about VSPD's appeal for a wheelchair accessible bus by watching this VIDEO.
I have seen first-hand the challenges that people with disabilities, particularly wheelchair users, face every day in VANUATU when they try to go anywhere, even in their own communities and towns. People either never leave their home due to shame and inaccessibility, or when they do, they face discrimination from bus drivers or indignities when being lifted into and out of a bus. Until very recently, there has never been a wheelchair accessible vehicle in Vanuatu. Even now there is only one privately owned accessible van that operates in Port Vila at a higher rate than the standard 150 vatu which is already a steep price to pay for people with disabilities who, more often than not, have no source of income.
I really NEED YOUR HELP to raise money to contribute towards purchasing a wheelchair accessible bus that VSPD could use to transport it's clients to take part in many activities that they would otherwise miss out on, simply because they can’t get there. This will have an incredibly positive impact on the lives of wheelchair users in Vanuatu. However, an accessible bus is NOT CHEAP, especially considering that it needs to be left hand drive and also the cost to get it shipped to Vanuatu.
On April 12th, I will start walking 4,265 KILOMETERS (2,659 MILES) from Mexico to Canada along the Pacific Crest Trail in the United States of America. To put this in perspective, that is like walking from Sydney to Perth (and then some) or walking around the island of Efate in Vanuatu 34 times. The trail starts in the desert, crosses over 57 major mountain passes, 19 major canyons and passes more than 1000 lakes. It goes through 3 states, 5 national monuments, 6 national parks, and 48 federal wilderness areas. Assuming I don’t get eaten by a bear (jokes mum!) I should finish after 5 months.
My initial target was $2,650 (AUD), the number of miles I will be walking, but we smashed that target in under 48 hours. My next target was $4,265, the number of kilometres. But within only a week, we had reached over $5,600!!! My current target is $10,000. If we can reach this target, then I will continue to raise our target until we get as close as possible to our goal of $50,000 (AUD), which is our conservative estimate of the cost to purchase a wheelchair accessible bus and have it shipped to Vanuatu.
PLEASE DONATE AND SHARE THIS WITH YOUR FAMILY, FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES!
For those people living in Vanuatu who wish to donate in the local currency, I am collecting cash in an ambitiously large tin at the VSPD office (opposite Collardeau School) and you can also transfer directly to the VSPD Bank Account:
Account Name: Vanuatu Society for Disabled People
Bank and Address: ANZ Bank (Van) Ltd, Port Vila, Vanuatu
BSB: 010-982
Account Number: 1761703
Swift Code: ANZBVUVX
Transaction reference: Walking4Wheels
I’m not very good at social media but I will do my absolute best to keep you all updated on my progress throughout! Follow me on Instagram (Walking_4_Wheels) and Facebook!
WISH ME LUCK!!!
Matthew
Organizer
Matthew Rimington
Organizer
Blue Haven, NSW