TRAVERSE Issue 15 - December 2019 | Page 10

ed sport I think it’s important to spread the message to younger women and girls to be who you want to be and be proud.” “It’s great to be different,” she continues. Dolly’s Dream was founded by her parents after a na- tion and worldwide outpouring of grief and support for their daughter. Teaming with the Alannah and Madeline Foundation they’ve set about to raise funds and aware- ness of bullying and the dangers of cyber-attacks, they advocate for the safety and wellbeing of children. They agree that it’s ok to be different and dream. “Their mission impacts the happiness of thousands of kids and future adults,” says Chantal. “Dolly’s story is one that touched my heart,” adds Chris. “Now with cyber bulling it makes it so very hard to escape. I think educating young people on the damage they can do or how to avoid it is vital.” School teacher and mother, Jayne White adds, “I deal with bullying on almost a daily basis. I see the effects it takes on people, especially young people. Anything that can bring awareness to this problem of bullying is great for the community in general.” And with personal experiences drawn upon, twelve women set off across the Simpson Desert, Australia’s fourth largest desert, the world’s largest parallel dune desert … more than five hundred kilometres of eleven hundred or so relentless sand dunes … all to be crossed. “The Simpson Desert is difficult to put into words,” grins Rikki. “It definitely needs to be experienced to un- derstand this amazing place. It isn’t for the faint hearted and will test you in many ways.” It’s a sentiment that all the women share, the Simpson is beautiful yet is also a very serious challenge and can be extremely dangerous. TRAVERSE 10