Already this year, we’ve been lucky enough to see some fantastic fundraising efforts created by our future GapBreak students. Not only are they raising money to help with their travel costs, but also to help the communities they will become a part of in their three months away with Antipodeans Abroad.
Two particular fundraising efforts have stood out for their creativity and enthusiasm in the past few weeks. Anna Graham, Maja Gabrynowicz and Shannyn Chisholm are all off to Ghana in 2011 for volunteer in a local community school and have created fundraising campaign to help them get there.
Brisbane girl Anna Graham will be rollerblading 17 kilometers from Nudgee Beach to Lanham Park in Queensland, in a bid to raise funds for her future trip.
“I am putting my life, body and street cred on the line to raise much-needed funds for children in poverty-stricken Ghana. In September of this year, I’ll be living there for 3 months, volunteering in an orphanage and teaching English in a local school.”
Anna has added a touch of show to her fundraising effort, dressing as a Ghanaian eagle from the national coat of arms.
Anna has added a touch of show to her fundraising effort, dressing as a Ghanaian eagle from the national coat of arms.
Maja and Shannyn are putting together a similar physical effort with their campaign “Walk To Ghana.” Together, the girls will walk 14 hours from Portsea to Mornington in Victoria to raise funds for the school children they will be teaching. The funds will go towards school materials on arrival in Ghana.
We sat down with the girls and asked them a few questions about their fundraising campaigns and their GapBreak in Ghana.
1. Why did you choose to do a GapBreak in Ghana?
Anna: I wanted a GapBreak that would be completely different from my life at home. Something that would provide me with a whole new set of experiences as well as being able to help those who are a lot less fortunate than us. The African culture has always been something that has really appealed to me, and I've only heard wonderful things about the types of people you meet in Ghana.
Shannyn: Unlike all of my friends, I could not get straight into Uni, as I wanted a year off to challenge myself, face the reality of life, immerse myself in a new culture, and what better place to do this, than Ghana. ever since I was young, I have been drawn to going to Africa as I have been intrigued with the culture, the people the colours etc, the diversity in the way we live etc. and I have heard so many wonderful things about Ghana (especially the people) from friends and documentaries so since was about 12, I knew I HAD to go to Ghana,
2. How did you come up with your fundraising idea?
Anna: I have something of a rollerblading reputation when I rolled to school once in year 12. I bought my blades for $1 at a school fete and decided to put them to use instead of tripping over them every morning on my floor. Unfortunately the route to school was rather hilly, and with the weight of my school bag pulling me down the trip was rather disastrous. But I got there in the end, covered in sweat, blood and mud, (2 hours late to school) just brimming with satisfaction. So recently when I was thinking of ways to make my cause look more attractive I thought what better way to mix it up than to bring back the old days and strap on the blades. I wanted something different, and rollerblading was perfect because, well, nobody does it anymore! And apart from the eagle being on Ghana's coat of arms, it was really just an excuse for me to dress up and have fun along the way :)
Shannyn: I wanted to do a fundraising event that was completely different from all others, something that would attract people to sponsor me as it was a courageous tough thing to do. I have always enjoyed walking, so I was like, why not walk a far distance as a fundraiser as it was adventurous and out there than a trivia night etc. and that is when I came up with the name "walk to Ghana", as basically the walk is a journey through multiple obstacles (such as finding sponsors), and the money we raise from this will help us help us continue on the journey to help the community of Swedru.
3. How much money do you hope to raise for your trip?
Anna: There are a lot of expenses involved in overseas travel. When you take into account flights, travel insurance, vaccinations and the actual cost of the placement, the trip is probably going to cost me around $9000. As well as this I hope to raise money for the underfunded schools that I'll be involved with in Ghana. From my rollerblading endeavours, my goal is to raise $1000 for basic materials such as pencils books, desks and notepads so that these schools can become better places to live and learn.
Shannyn: I am hoping to raise $2000, right now I have approximately $1000 but I’m really hoping to get more. The good thing about me and Maja doing this walk together is that we are going to put our money together, so hopefully $4000 so we can really make a difference in the school community.
4. Did you enjoy the recent training camp (or are you looking forward to the one in May)?
Anna: I haven't been on the training camp yet but I'm definitely looking forward to it! I've been talking to all the girls on my placement online, and I can't wait to meet them all in June.
Shannyn: Yes I did enjoy the training camp, finally meeting my group was SO exciting, as we have named our selves the GG's (ghana girls). highlight was definitely talking to Georgie, an ex-Gapper as she answered all our questions.
5. What are you hoping to get out of your three months in Africa?
Anna: 3 months in Africa will be like nothing else. I hope that I'll come back a better person with some fantastic experiences about living a completely new way of life. It will be the chance of a lifetime to make a difference (however small) and offer what I can to those who have so little.
Shannyn: I definitely want to grow as a person from this experience in terms of appreciation for our country and awareness of the world around us. I want to improve the school's conditions, whether it be new classrooms, water tanks etc, and as a result create a better learning environment. Most of all I want this placement to challenge me and give me life experiences that will hopefully make me a better person for years to come.
To help the girls in their fundraising effort you can visit their websites here:
Anna Graham: Help Anna Get To Ghana, 17th of April
http://www.mycause.com.au/mycause/raise_money/fundraise.php?id=18507
Maja Gabrynowicz and Shannyn Chisholm: “Walk to Africa” 3rd of April
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=192696900753815
Anna: I have something of a rollerblading reputation when I rolled to school once in year 12. I bought my blades for $1 at a school fete and decided to put them to use instead of tripping over them every morning on my floor. Unfortunately the route to school was rather hilly, and with the weight of my school bag pulling me down the trip was rather disastrous. But I got there in the end, covered in sweat, blood and mud, (2 hours late to school) just brimming with satisfaction. So recently when I was thinking of ways to make my cause look more attractive I thought what better way to mix it up than to bring back the old days and strap on the blades. I wanted something different, and rollerblading was perfect because, well, nobody does it anymore! And apart from the eagle being on Ghana's coat of arms, it was really just an excuse for me to dress up and have fun along the way :)
Shannyn: I wanted to do a fundraising event that was completely different from all others, something that would attract people to sponsor me as it was a courageous tough thing to do. I have always enjoyed walking, so I was like, why not walk a far distance as a fundraiser as it was adventurous and out there than a trivia night etc. and that is when I came up with the name "walk to Ghana", as basically the walk is a journey through multiple obstacles (such as finding sponsors), and the money we raise from this will help us help us continue on the journey to help the community of Swedru.
3. How much money do you hope to raise for your trip?
Anna: There are a lot of expenses involved in overseas travel. When you take into account flights, travel insurance, vaccinations and the actual cost of the placement, the trip is probably going to cost me around $9000. As well as this I hope to raise money for the underfunded schools that I'll be involved with in Ghana. From my rollerblading endeavours, my goal is to raise $1000 for basic materials such as pencils books, desks and notepads so that these schools can become better places to live and learn.
Shannyn: I am hoping to raise $2000, right now I have approximately $1000 but I’m really hoping to get more. The good thing about me and Maja doing this walk together is that we are going to put our money together, so hopefully $4000 so we can really make a difference in the school community.
4. Did you enjoy the recent training camp (or are you looking forward to the one in May)?
Anna: I haven't been on the training camp yet but I'm definitely looking forward to it! I've been talking to all the girls on my placement online, and I can't wait to meet them all in June.
Shannyn: Yes I did enjoy the training camp, finally meeting my group was SO exciting, as we have named our selves the GG's (ghana girls). highlight was definitely talking to Georgie, an ex-Gapper as she answered all our questions.
5. What are you hoping to get out of your three months in Africa?
Anna: 3 months in Africa will be like nothing else. I hope that I'll come back a better person with some fantastic experiences about living a completely new way of life. It will be the chance of a lifetime to make a difference (however small) and offer what I can to those who have so little.
Shannyn: I definitely want to grow as a person from this experience in terms of appreciation for our country and awareness of the world around us. I want to improve the school's conditions, whether it be new classrooms, water tanks etc, and as a result create a better learning environment. Most of all I want this placement to challenge me and give me life experiences that will hopefully make me a better person for years to come.
To help the girls in their fundraising effort you can visit their websites here:
Anna Graham: Help Anna Get To Ghana, 17th of April
http://www.mycause.com.au/mycause/raise_money/fundraise.php?id=18507
Maja Gabrynowicz and Shannyn Chisholm: “Walk to Africa” 3rd of April
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=192696900753815
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