Starting at the North Pole on 1 April 2011, ultra marathon runner Pat Farmer is running through Canada, USA, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Chile and Argentina.
Pat is undertaking this momentous challenge to highlight the needless deaths of millions of people around the world each year caused by lack of clean water and the importance of clean water and sanitation in building healthy families and communities. All money raised will go to Red Cross water sanitation projects across the globe.
Clean water and sanitation reduces fatalities from diarrhoea, improves maternal and infant health, general community health and the lifestyle of villagers who often travel for hours every day to access water.
Red Cross water and sanitation programs are part of an integrated community health approach. We work with locals to install communal taps and new toilets in villages and provide hygiene education - encouraging people to kill germs by boiling water before drinking and washing their hands and clothes regularly. We support locals to maintain installed water systems by fencing them off from animals to avoid damage or water contamination.
To date, Pole2Pole Run for Water has raised $38,219.
***To sponsor Pat's run and support Red Cross water and sanitation programs, click here.***
For more information on Pat's journey, visit the Pole2Pole Run website.
Money raised for the Pole2Pole Run For Water Appeal through the Pole to Pole run will be used to deliver clean water and sanitation projects, with a focus on addressing the millions of children globally who die each year from a lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene.
Funds raised will be managed by Australian Red Cross and applied to projects, in collaboration with individual Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.
Any interest earned on donations will be invested back into the appeal. Australian Red Cross will not deduct more than 10% of any donation to cover administration and appeal costs. In the unlikely event that the funds raised exceed the amount required, Australian Red Cross will direct the excess funds to other public health projects within the Red Cross Red Crescent Movement.
If you are an Australian resident for taxation purposes, you should ordinarily be entitled to a tax deduction for a donation of $2 or more to the Pole2Pole Run for Water Appeal.
If you are a non-resident of Australia for taxation purposes, you should seek your own professional advice in respect of the tax deductibility of your donation to the Pole2Pole Run for Water Appeal.