Another day another dollar, as they say. To be honest, though, I can’t wait to finish work so I can throw myself into this full time! I think I may well have decided on the charities once and for all now:
1. Rottweiler Welfare Association
A small excerpt from their “About Us” section:
“The Rottweiler Welfare Association, is a not-for-profit organisation and was started in 1979 to find good homes for Rottweilers. The association is completely run by volunteers and has been a registered charity since 1981. Our logo says – ‘It begins here’ and we firmly believe that a dog deserves a second chance to find its forever home.
The aims of the association are to:
· Rescue abandoned and neglected Rottweilers and help those who are unwanted
· Provide all necessary care, treatment and rehabilitation
· Assess these dogs for adoptability and find suitable homes for them”
The reason that I have chosen the Rottweiler Welfare Association is because they are a national charity so the money and aid will go a long way to helping the plight of unfortunate Rottweilers that are the victims of bad ownership. I have owned a Rottweiler, Roman, for just over 2 years now and he is my world now (sad I know!!). I want to do anything I can to not only help this worthy cause but also raise the profile of the breed as a good, friendly dog.
I also believe that if Roman is going to do this walk with me then the least I can do in return is offer my support to his breed.
2. Help For Heroes
A small excerpt from their “About Us” section:
“Help For Heroes was the idea of Appeal Chairman Bryn Parry and a group of friends and relations, many of who have connections with serving servicemen and women. Bryn and his wife Emma wanted to do something to help the wounded and came up with the idea of a sponsored bike ride. They mentioned it to some friends who mentioned it to some more friends and suddenly Help For Heroes was born and growing fast. A flurry of visits to various offices led to the campaign being blessed by the head of the army, Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Richard Dannatt.
Help For Heroes does wonderful work for soldiers and other servicemen and women both directly and through its support of other service charities”
One of the things that I have been contemplating when trying to pick charities is that I need to pick charities that are popular with people. Admittedly a Rottweiler charity is not exactly everyone’s cup of tea and I have been met with a few quizzical looks and comical reactions when I have informed people of my first choice!
Help For Heroes is a charity that has been set up to provide aid for the people that put their lives on the line for us and also for the families that are unfortunate enough to lose someone in such a tragic way. I believe that there are many people across the country who would be more than willing to give to this cause and, in my eyes, it is definitely a worthwhile one!
3. Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders)
A small excerpt from their “About Us” section:
“Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) is an international humanitarian aid organisation that provides emergency medical assistance to populations in danger in more than 70 countries.
In countries where health structures are insufficient or even non-existant, MSF collaborates with authorities such as the Ministry of Health to provide assistance. MSF works in rehabilitation of hospitals and dispensaries, vaccination programmes and water and sanitation projects. MSF also works in remote health care centres, slum areas and provides training of local personnel. All this is done with the objective of rebuilding health structures to acceptable levels.”
MSF will be my designated “French” charity. Although MSF is without doubt an international charity it was set up in France back in 1971 by a small group of French doctors in the aftermath of the Biarra secession (Nigerian civil war). I feel it is important that I represent a French charity as I will be spending a fair amount of time walking through France.
I am keen to keep the interest in my walk high for as long as possible and as far afield as possible also. I believe that by incorporating a French charity I will be able to generate genuine interest within France.
4. Croce Rossa Italiana (Italian Red Cross) – more specifically the Abruzzo appeal
A small excerpt from their “About Us” section:
“More than one hundred years of history, more than one hundred years of solidarity, sacrifice, self-sacrifice, more than one hundred years in the service of humanity. First time to the rescue of the wounded in war, the Red Cross is now the most important humanitarian association. For diversity of activities that develop in the field of relief, health and solidarity witnessed a spirit at the forefront of the fight against all forms of suffering.”
I’m sure I don’t really have to say much about the disaster in L’Aquila earlier this year but, just in case you don’t know about, it I will anyway. The earthquake occurred at 03:32 on the 6th April 2009 and measured 6.3 on the Moment magnitude scale, causing damage to thousands of buildings in the medieval city of L’Aquila.
Such was the devastation of the earthquake, several buildings simply collapsed and 297 people were killed. About 1,000 people were injured and as many as 66,000 people were made homeless. The sheer scale of devastation as a result of the earthquake is simply incomprehensible.
For these reasons this will be my “Italian” charity. Again, I am hoping that the involvement of a specifically Italian charity will help to raise the profile of my walk across Italy and maximise my potential for raising funds.
I will be looking into the possibility of setting up links on my blog in the near future to allow people to donate to my selected charities and will keep you posted on my progress.
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