Click to track my swim in real-time! My boat's called The Viking Princess.
Will's Three Charities
When I first took on this challenge, I was not sure if I could put up with the extra pressure of doing it for charity. It meant that this would not just be a massive swim, but a massive swim with alot of money riding on it. I finally decided that the pros out weighed the cons and three local charities were selected by me, my colleague and my sponsor. With less than 10 % of participants making a successful crossing, I knew that I now had to do everything I could to be in that top 10%. The money will be split exactly 3 ways and they will be as follows:
Demelza-James provides a hospice at home service for over 450 children in South West Kent and South London with life-threatening and life-limiting illness and their families. 120 of these are within the Sussex area. The service complements the care offered at Demelza House with the Demelza-James specialist paediatric nurses going directly into the family home to provide care, crisis intervention, an on-call service and respite.
Macmillan Cancer Support
Macmillan Cancer Support improves the lives of people affected by cancer. We provide practical, medical, emotional and financial support and push for better cancer care. Cancer affects us all. We can all help. We are Macmillan.
Eastbourne and Wealden YMCA
Second 'Inner Journey' trip planned
Release date: 16 March 2007
Followinglast year's successful visit, more young people will trek across remoteparts of South Africa to work in schools and with people with HIV andAids in 2007.
In September 2006, Eastbourne and Wealden YMCA teamed up with Kingston and Wimbledon YMCA to run the Inner Journey Project.
Theaim of the three-week trip, which was partly paid for throughsponsorship from local individuals and businesses, was to help theyoung people develop.
The group recently held a presentation eveningdescribing their experiences on the first trip, and setting out theirplans to return to South Africa.
Inner Journey II
AngusWingfield, expedition leader and Eastbourne YMCA centre manager, said,'The next project will be on the same lines as the first - the maindifference will be that we will be doing a lot more work alongsideyoung people from Durban YMCA and two local community schools inKwaZulu Natal.
'These young people will be joining us on wildernesstrails in the African bush where we hope to reintroduce them to theways of their forefathers as they gain lost skills of game tracking andan understanding of bush skills.
There will be more focus on young people learning from each other and understanding their cultural difference
'There will be more focus on both groups of young people learning from each other and understanding their cultural difference.
'Therewill also be a longer HIV/Aids programme with the next Inner JourneyProject. Money will be raised in the UK to help to make the lives ofthose orphans that are suffering with AIDS related diseases a littlemore comfortable in South Africa.'
Building skills
There areplaces for four young people from Eastbourne on the second expedition.The campaign to raise money for the trip will be launched soon.
Angusadded: 'Each project costs around £1,500 per person and we will beaiming to take another four young people from our region.
'The youngpeople will be completing a two month programme of learning before theygo to South Africa, as before, so they have a clear understanding ofwhat they are to encounter abroad.
'The focus will be on life andsocial skills, environmental and conservation awareness, culturalunderstanding and learning about other global issues such as HIV/Aidsand life for young people in less wealthy countries.'