This Saturday, the community got together for our annual Relay for Life. What an amazing day I had. There was so much love and support shown for me! My community is full of beautiful people! Thank you xxx The committee let me sit on stage at the Kiama Relay for Life opening ceremony. My Aunty Carol held me and delivered the Relay Oath, on my behalf. I didn't really want to sit still, but Aunty Carol said I could go on my bike if I did a few more 'good sitting' exercises. So, I sat really well. |
Soon enough, I was on my bike for some of the Survivors' Lap. We had to start pretty quickly, so I wasn't strapped in very well. | Mum thought it would be best to take me off the bike once we got to our camp site. I was carried the rest of the lap. I'm getting pretty heavy now, so I think Mum might have had sore arms after she finished this lap! |
The temperatures hardly changed all day, and cold winds whipped along the track. Walkers were wearing beanies and jumpers, jackets and scarves.
Mum and Dad had me bundled up against the cold winds.
The Music Makers performed again this year. Last year, everyone kept walking. This year, more people knew about them and it seemed as though Relay stopped while they were on stage. Everyone sat and listened and cheered. I love those guys! They let me sit in front of the stage, while they performed one of their songs. I smiled and danced. I think the clapping was for me! (cheeky)
Melissa even let me get on stage with the Music Makers. I loved it!
(Go to their concert - you'll love it! May 23rd)
Then, I listened to Woody - love him, too!
How cool did our socks look? We could see our team members
anywhere on the track, because of their stripey legs!
We were very lucky. Kel and Mahlah were there to sell their famous gelato. (Read more here) Even though it was so cold, lots of people got milkshakes and gelato. All of the money raised was donated to my Relay team! Thanks! |
A couple of hours later, our tent caved in, and the fly flew away!
It got too windy, so almost everyone went home.
The SES came by the camp sites and told us to pack up. We'd had no choice!
The section we were in had suffered a very strong gust of wind, and we saw a few shelters take off. We had a team member standing on the corners of our shelters, holding them in place against the wind!
Just after we pulled everything apart, it started to spit rain!
We stayed around and walked more laps, but by about 10pm, the Relay was pretty much evacuated. All night activities were cancelled.
Most of the camp sites had been cleared. The damaged shelters were stacked in the cricket nets, to stop them from blowing away and hurting someone!
We did see one tent wrapped around a tree! No one was hurt, though.
There was something still standing all around the Relay track...
None of the Memory or Hope bags had been damaged!
but we were there as much as we could be.
The weather did not work in our favour, at all, but you all turned up wearing your bright clothes and colourful socks and smiled all day.
Despite the blisters, the sore muscles, the broken shelter (sorry Terese!) the potential broken shelter (sorry Hodge!), the wind burn and the runny noses, it was an incredible event.
A rough lap count (remembering we only walked for around 12 hours because of the extreme weather conditions) was 500 laps - 250kms! Amazing!
But the most amazing thing of all, our finally tally..... $10,564.25!!!
Thank you to each and every person who sponsored us, to everyone who came and did a lap and to every person on the team.
We couldn't have done it without you!
Thank you!!!!
Dexter's 2013
Who is Dexter?
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