After our shenanigans in June of last year when a team of 8 adventurers left Steyning to conquer the roads of India in Rickshaws, rather than running a mile after playing on the highways and byways of India, it appears a lot of them wanted another adventure. This time our numbers have swollen in many ways, four teams to eight, three wheels to four, one thousand three hundred kms to two thousand five hundred kms, and one gent to four, and lastly seven women to eleven and still growing, plus one charity is now two! Safe in Sussex, who I am proud to be a patron of plus Maher Ashram based in Pune with Projects all over India I am an Ambassador and Fundraiser for. It just shows that the issues that are covered by both of these organisations are so needed on both sides of the planted and the abuse that they deal with is the same and is no recogniser of class or culture… Same book a different cover.
So that’s the serious stuff… Now the fun begins…. The call went out “Meet me in Chennai on the 8th of February for a car rally?” amazingly the call was answered, and in the olden days of CB radio we have us a Convoy. Princely who is long-suffering has put together a route with his European business partner Guy a route that starts in Chennai India’s own Motor City by the Bay of Bengal travels south to the French province of Puducherry, round the tip of India, and then turning north into Kerala, stopping at Kochi, then turning inland to Coimbatore, on to Mysuru, traveling onwards in a westerly direction to Mangalore where we see the ocean only this time it’s the Arabian Sea. We make for Hampi which is an ancient temple site and a day off for good behaviour. Then our chariots start for home and end in the small Portuguese State of Goa.
I keep saying this is not a race it’s a rally, but a rally with a purpose. Our goal is to raise funds to create buildings for Women and children in both places. After last year’s major success when we raised an amazing £26,000 which enabled Safe in Sussex to refurbish the bathrooms at one refuge, this year’s goal is to create a child art and therapy space here and buy the building materials to build sleeping quarters at the new refuge in Andhra Pradesh, which I was lucky enough to visit at Easter.
Thank you to all our supporters old and new, and we have plenty of ways that you can be involved.
https://www.givengain.com/project/helen-raising-funds-for-2-causes-79888