Village teams raising funds for 2nd annual Fonkoze event  
Kristian Partington

Downtime is rare in village life. Events and activities flow into each other seamlessly, especially the large ones that involve all villages coming together with a common purpose.

The Schlegel Olympics brought residents, volunteers and team members together from all villages to celebrate the wisdom and spirit of elders, and now, with the many Olympics-related events a memory, villages are setting their sights on the Hand Up for Haiti five-kilometre walk/run, taking place Sept. 9.

This is the second annual fundraiser organized by the Schlegel team to raise funds for
Fonkoze, a microfinance organization that helps Haitian families out of the depths of poverty by financing small businesses led by women.

Last year the event generated close to $25,000.

Taunton Mills kinesiologist Ana Jabbari is organizing a way for everyone to participate in the walk, even if they’re unable to travel to the Williamsburg Town Centre in Kitchener.

A walking club is set up that will allow residents and team members to walk five kilometres up and down Main Street, and a big poster will capture the outlines of all the Taunton Mills hands pitching in with whatever funds they can muster.

Ana says events and activities that allow people to contribute to worthy causes outside of the villages are a great way to motivate residents to maintain a healthy level of physical activity.

“It’s excellent,” she says. “It’s an incentive to get people in trying new equipment, getting them active, and it really just gives them a cause and a meaningful way to engage in physical activity.”

And there’s been no shortage of incentives lately.

“The summer’s been really active and busy; it’s been fun,” she says.

The Hand up for Haiti event, which will draw teams from the villages to Kitchener alongside members of the community for a “kiddie” walk, the official walk/run and a free barbecue sponsored by Remedy’s Rx Drug Store, is like a wrap to the busy summer, Ana adds.

Click here for more information on the Fonkoze fundraiser.