Kayak around island for Scars charity
Intrepid kayakers will take to the seas once more this month for a 40-mile journey around the island to raise funds for a good cause.
Kayaking for Kids collected more than $36,000 for charity Saving Children and Revealing Secrets at their inaugural event last year and they hope to raise even more this time around.
Event organiser and Scars co-founder Jerry Rivers said: “In spite of hurricanes and huge seas, over two weekends in September and October last year, seven intrepid kayakers circumnavigated the islands of Bermuda, raising over $36,000 for Scars. This year, we hope to attract many more participants and, most importantly, raise even more money. The goal is to paddle the entire outer edge of Bermuda over a two-day period.”
Mr Rivers explained that the event was the idea of friends Michael Harden and John Bonvetti, who shared a love of kayaking, a desire for adventure, and a desire to help a local charity.
He added that Mr Harden and Mr Bonvetti then reached out to others to join in on the adventure and they picked Scars as the beneficiary of the money they raised.
Mr Rivers said: “They chose Scars due to their awareness of the Scars mission to protect Bermuda’s children from sexual abuse.”
He added that Scars’s child sexual abuse prevention training is free for adults and that the funds raised this year would help cover the cost of purchasing and publishing the material and equipment used.
It would also go towards the general operating expenses to organise, host and generate awareness.
To date, Scars has trained more than 5,900 people entrusted with children to prevent, recognise and react responsibly to child sexual abuse.
The event will be held on September 30 and October 1. In case of bad weather, there will be an alternative plan providing an “equally worthy challenge for our kayakers”.
Visit www.kayak4kids.bm.