We have arrived in England
We have experienced a lot in the last 7 weeks. We have walked a lot and for a long time. There were days when the last few kilometers were exhausting and there were days when everything went like clockwork. We always found somewhere to stay. We always had something to eat, even when there was no restaurant or store nearby. And most importantly, we arrived in England safe and sound.
We have reached another destination: it's England. We are in Dorset on the Isle of Purbeck near Bournemouth, right on the Channel coast. We already know this region. The coastal footpaths high up on the cliffs and the nature reserve behind them are impressive. It is also the typical architectural style for Dorset. The houses are built from quarried limestone. And the roofs are covered with stone slabs or reeds. And then there are the blooming cottage gardens, with old rose varieties, palm trees and perennials of all kinds. We have arrived in this scenically unique region and are enjoying one of our few rest days this Saturday.
We will be in Perranporth / Cornwall in around 20 days at the latest. On this route I will also be collecting donations for the children's hospice in St. Austell / Cornwall. These donations will go to the Little Harbour" children's hospicewhich we will visit and report on. It is a larger hospice, next to the sea, and it is mainly funded by donations.
Donations in England: "JustGiving"
In England, there is a special website for collecting donations - "JustGiving". Anyone can upload their "donation project" and collect donations. The donations go directly to the organization to be supported. This is an extremely simple and transparent process. And the English know this homepage. Here's an example from last night at the Black Swan in Swanage: four ladies at their Lady's Evening spontaneously donated £100 to the Littel Harbour children's hospice in St. Austell. We got talking about our dogs and our walk to Cornwall. It was moving for me to see how "donation" works in England. Just a few seconds later, I received a message from JustGiving confirming the donation. Many thanks to the "Black Swan Ladies", also on behalf of all the donations that are still to come...
Click here for my JustGiving project!
Collecting donations is not easy...
Last, but not least: the people we meet are impressed by our walk to England. We often have to explain several times that we really are walking the whole way and not taking the train in between. And now I have to explain the complicated subject of "children's hospices" and talk about the large number of children with parity palliative care - that's usually too much. Not only are we running under difficult conditions (dogs, dog food, buggies, ...); we also have a complicated message. The topic of "children and young people with life-limiting illnesses" and "10,000 children with palliative care in Switzerland (or 100,000 in the UK)" is largely unknown. How can donations be successfully collected here? Only with education. Therefore: Many thanks to all those who support our project! It only works together! We are happy about any support...