Starfish Everest Marathon
Attempting to conquer a mountain of a million orphans, one step at a time.
Globalteer is proud to support Alan Heaton in his quest to raise funding and awareness for the plight of the Nepalese children.
A wise man had a habit of early morning walks on the beach. He enjoyed the fresh air of the sea breeze on the way to work.
One day, as he looked along the shore, he looked down the beach and saw a human figure moving like a dancer. He smiled to himself at the thought of someone who would dance to the day, and so, he walked faster to catch up.
As he got closer he noticed that the figure was a young girl, and what she was doing was not dancing at all. The young girl was reaching down to the shore, picking up small objects, and throwing them into the ocean.
He came closer still and called out "Good morning! May I ask what you are doing".
The young girl paused, looked up, and replied "Throwing starfish into the ocean".
"I must ask then, why are you throwing starfish into the ocean?". asked the somewhat startled wise man.
To this, the young girl replied, "The sun is up and the tide is going out. If I don't throw them in, they'll die".
Upon hearing this, the wise old man commented, "but, young girl, do you not realize that there are miles and miles of beach and there are starfish all along every mile? You can't possibly make a difference!".
At this, the young girl bent down, picked up yet another starfish, and threw it into the ocean. As it met the water, she said, "It made a difference to that one".
The Star Thrower, a story by Loren Eiseley 1907-1977. I believe that the name starfish and this wonderfully powerful story written by Loren Eiseley is a great name for my event. It represents what I am truthfully trying to accomplish. Nepal is infamous for Mt Everest, unfortunately there is another Mountain which gets less publicity but is equally as important if not more so "A mountain of a million orphans."
If people were as keen to climb and conquer this mountain as they are to climb Mt Everest, then, the situation concerning Nepali children would be substantially better, facing a much more prosperous future than the one they are currently facing.
My name is Alan Heaton and my mission is to participate in the Everest Marathon on May 29th to raise money, through sponsorships and donations, for the Orphan Children of Nepal whilst promoting awareness of the horrendous living conditions they have to endure on a daily basis. I saw first hand the plight of the children, the poverty and the lack of education available.
The Tenzing-Hilary Everest Mountain Marathon is an international high altitude extreme sports event to commemorate the Golden jubilee celebration of their ascent of Mt Everest.
The marathon takes place in the Khumbu Valley, Nepal, and is considered one of the toughest endurance events of its kind. The event attracts wide media coverage from around the world including the BBC.
My aim is to set a new record for the fastest European competitor. I have recently conducted altitude training in South America and training analysis would suggest this is now achievable.
I have had the unfortunate experience to witness first hand some of the horrendous things which goes on in orphanages. It is upsetting to see the impact poverty, war, and disease has on children. They are the ones who suffer the most. According to UNICEF, 30,000 children die each day from poverty. Yet, children, who are the most vulnerable, are the ones who have no voice. They cannot protect themselves and Nepal as a nation is doing little to help them. As adults, we can change the tide to ensure that all children get the basic food, clean water, healthcare, shelter and education, as well as a life where they are safe, nurtured and can play, grow, create and learn.
By donating to my cause you will be directly helping improve the quality of life these children have. Your generous donation, no matter how small you think it is, will be directly going to a great cause. " Each child is one starfish waiting to be rescued. Small steps over time lead us to a better tomorrow. "
I would like to share a story with you about an experience that profoundly affected my life.
It was October 2005 and at 23 years of age I sat staring at the billions of stars with tears swelling. I was trekking in the Annapurna region of Nepal with breathtaking views of the snow capped Mountains surrounding me perched on a rock. For most that night, the images of malnourished children and their dire living conditions kept playing like a slide show in my mind. I had been in Thankot nestled in the kathmandu valley for the previous 4 weeks where I had been volunteering in an orphanage with an organization responsible for the sanitation, welfare and health of 30 so orphans of differing ages and conditions.
At the beginning of September I travelled to a rural village with new found friends to live with a host family for a week to learn more about their culture and language. By
now I had already realized that my father was indeed right when he told me the people of Nepal live in one of the poorest countries in the world, but are emotional millionaires. I was taken back by their smile, which speaks a thousand words, overwhelmed as we arrived and welcomed like family in a village with no previous contact with the western world, here we were family. I will never forget the smiles on the children's faces despite the rust colour of their hair which indicated the lack of essential vitamins to help them grow and develop as they should.
The images of the first few days of the orphanage played heavily on my mind as I reflected on what I had seen and heard. Although we had recently moved the children to a bigger house, it still had left much to desire. It offered just slightly more relief from the crammed, unsanitary conditions they had just moved from. Still no running water, one small bathroom which had no ventilation. There was a young didi who would feed 30 children in a kitchen which more resembled a garage. Children were sleeping 4 to 5 to a bed barely big enough for an average westerner.
Before I could even put my bags down on the first morning I had children coming to me in severe pain. Most if not all the children were infected with sores and skin diseases from the filthy living conditions. One young boy had just returned days earlier from the hospital after being treated for cholera, infected from an unknown water supply.
The second morning I awoke to find a strange boy unknown to me in one of the beds.
He refused to show his face for it was hidden under a thin sheet. It was only a matter of time until he showed me. I could only feel immense sorrow when later, after much waiting and arguing with the owner, the poor young man had leprosy and would spend the next week or so in hospital and a further two years on medication. The owner, unwilling to help, just said that the boy has done bad by the gods and he is getting punished. This comment was not surprising coming from a man who was under investigation for child trafficking.
Although I did not realize it at the time, my commitment to underprivileged children in developing countries is due to my memories from that night. I remember, as I wiped away the tears flowing down my cheek, that I began to focus on what I could do to help create a world where all children, regardless of their race, colour, or location had the opportunities to grow and develop as intended.
Recently, I picked up a small stone and tossed it into the pool of water in front of me. I watched the ripples get wider and wider and larger and larger. It was at this point I realized that by myself I could do very little to bring about a long term change, but with the help and support of other like-minded people willing to make a difference, then things could significantly change.
The importance of this idea gripped me through speaking to others. Imagine it, an ocean of people who wanted their life to matter. People who want to leave the world in a better state than when they entered it. Even if it is to make one persons' life easier and more bearable. Just to make one person's life more happy is to have succeeded.
That's when I decided I wanted to run the Everest marathon to help raise money for the children through donations. Every penny gained is a penny more.
For more information on the event please visit www.everestmarathon.com.
Soon to come is a website for the event with all details and stories of who and how you can help the Orphan Children Of Nepal.
To donate, please click on the link below: