Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 121, August 2019 | Page 16

IN THE LEAD
“They share a wonderful
friendship, a great love of
running, as well as a common
goal to help others, and they’ve
taken their unique sisterhood to
a new level through their Run
for a Child initiative”
they only had 49 athletes. “We knew there would be
less runners, so we sent out mails to friends, asking
for donations, and we still raised R18,400 for WAR.
Also, WAR makes comfort packs for victims, so we
asked runners to bring donations, and we ended up
handing over a whole bakkie-load of stuff.”
One of the banners that was donated for the cause
For a venue, Teresa suggested the Jan Kriel School
for children with special needs in Kuils River, and the
school said yes when the two organisers said they
wanted to give all the money raised from entry fees
and donations to the school. That first event, now
called the Run for a Child 12-Hour Challenge, took
place in October, with 112 athletes braving sweltering
heat and raising R24,000 in the process. “Dr Fanie
Harold at the school told us they have two specific
kids who needed facilitators in class to help them, so
that’s what the money was used for.”
ANOTHER PROTEST...
Feeling proud of their achievement, Petro says they
were rather surprised to find all the 1000km Challenge
athletes up in arms once again. “When we said this
was a once-off, to replace the cancelled race, they
told us they wanted more! Then Hilton Murray called
and told us that wheelchair athlete Anita Engelbrecht
had attended Paarl School in Brackenfell, so could we
do a run there to raise funds for that school, please?
The school said yes, and Gerhard gave us the go-
ahead as well, so we went for it.”
With Hilton Murray and Anita Engelbrecht
With a second successful event behind them, Gerhard
then told them that they could put on a 12-hour circuit
race every two months and it would count for the
Challenge, so Petro and Teresa decided that’s what
they would do. “We now have six per year, all to raise
funds for kids with special needs, as they get so little
state support. We also did one run to benefit Women
Against Rape (WAR), because a lot of victims of rape
are children. We have been thrilled to see how high
the demand is for entries, as this means more money
raised for the chosen beneficiary.”
“We decided from the word go not to involve clubs
and the province, so these are not officially sanctioned
races, just fun events put on by experienced runners.
The running community has been so supportive, not
just coming out to run, but also to have fun. We’ve
even had people walk past, go home to get some
money and then come back, pay their R200 and join
for a few laps!”
UPCOMING FIXTURES
The next Run for a Child event will take place on
21 September at Willowbridge Mall in Tyger Valley, to
raise funds for Pumpkin Ministries, a foster home for
children in Durbanville. After that, Vista Nova Primary
School in Pinelands will play host to an event on 30
November. Petro says they normally get around 100
entries per event, but the July event at Vergenoegd
Wine Estate was badly affected by wet weather and
The beauty of the Run for a Child events is their
simplicity. Runners and walkers can do any number
of loops, at their own pace, with breaks any time, and
they can start and finish any time they want. Petro
adds that they want their events to be family-friendly
and fun, in order to maximise participation, and
they’ve even had young kids joining in. “We have this
one little girl, nine-year-old Melissa from Rustenburg
Primary School, who does 21km each time. At the Iris
House event, she handed us an envelope and said
she and her friends had raised money at their school
for us. It contained R1500!”
“We don’t make a cent out of these races, as all the
money we make goes to the beneficiary school or
organisation. There is a water table with water and
Coke as well as snacks, so we ask runners to bring
donations for the table, and it is always stocked for
the whole 12 hours! We also received a finishline
banner and feather banners donated by Anette Botha,
who works for a design company, and we have an
anonymous donor who gives us R1000 for each race,
to be used for prize money, while we cover the costs
ourselves for trophies or mugs for the winners.”
PLANNING MORE
Given the success of these events, Petro says they
are definitely going to continue with them in 2020.
“There are so many schools we still want to support,
but it is difficult to fit them all in, as those who
have already hosted one want to make it an annual
thing. Fortunately we have all our own family and
friends helping us on race day, plus timing done by
Roy Joseph and sound equipment leant to us by
commentator Dean Hewitt, so it all just works!”
Another cheque handed over
after a successful 12-hour run
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ISSUE 121 AUGUST 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
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