Monday, January 31, 2011

Mark Beaumont

I invited Mark Beaumont, the former holder of the world record for cycling round the world, to give a talk at our school. I spent the weekend with him and it proved very interesting. For such a young guy, he is very self-assured and has achieved a great deal. He wrote a book about his experiences called 'The man who cycled the world'. I am always interested in people with inspiring stories or who have overcome adversity. Last year I invited Jamie Andrew (see below) to our school for the same reason. You might know that he had a quadruple amputation after having been stranded in the French Alps for 5 days.


















The talk was very well received. Many kids came up and spoke to Mark afterwards and there were lots of questions after the talk from the audience. My  hope is that some of our students will be inspired to go and be an individual where it is so easy to conform in this world.

Read this book!
 It proves to be a fascinating talk. He recently completed his second book, still to be published , on his journey cycling from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. There have been two documentaries made about his journeys.

The reason for putting this post here is that Mark is involved in a great deal of charity projects in the UK and in the developing world. He agrees with me that it is better to donate to specific projects and see your money make a difference than to donate anonymously to a big charity. If you like this post, please read my others. I am trying to raise money for Swazi youth to go to university. Swaziland is a small landlocked country between South Africa and Mozambique. It is beset with problems. I believe education is key. I have known this one youth for 5 years and sponsored him out of my own pocket through secondary school but I don't have enough cash to send him to university.

Mark and my son Patrick, a devoted fan!
If you feel able to donate even a small amount, it will be gratefully received. I have direct connections to Swaziland and keep in regular contact with those I help. Help me to help others.