These last few months have been extremely testing times for all of us, however, with communities coming together all over the country there have been positives to come out of this pandemic what with the incredible work of volunteers and our brilliant NHS.
Families have also grown stronger and bonded during lockdown and this couldn’t be truer for the Allwright family in Maidstone who collectively started their Row4Seafarers: The Atlantic Challenge Fundraiser, getting on the rowing machine to row the equivalent distance from Penzance, Cornwall to St Johns in Newfoundland, Canada from their very own back garden!
The ‘Row the Atlantic’ fundraising challenge, which is 2,200miles, started on 7th June with the aim to raise emergency support funds for developing world seafarers and their families severely impacted by the COVID pandemic.
Consisting of mum (Chiemi), dad (Gavin) and their three teenage children – Mathew, Hannah and Leo – the Allwright family have all been working tirelessly every day to meet their rowing goals.
CommunityAd caught up with Gavin to find out more about his incredible family fundraising challenge…
What inspired you as a family to want to collectively row 2,200 miles in your back garden?
This came from a conversation concerning the lockdown and a previous fundraising activity I had done from my work perspective – we had collected around £16,000 via that for the same charity cause, but while I had done a lot of work for that on the computer, we felt that doing something that was more in solidarity and challenging to reflect the challenges that these seafarers and their families were undertaking was important to us.
Seafarers and especially those in developing countries are the unseen, unsung everyday working heroes delivering 80% of everything we use, and this was a small chance to help out.
I am the Secretary General of the International Windship Association and have done quite a bit of work in developing countries. My wife’s family in Japan are all connected with the sea (shipbuilding, breaking and fishing) and my father was Royal Navy, so raising money for Seafarers was a good fit.
Seafarers, ships and physical challenge – a rowing machine challenge seemed to be the natural choice.
You mapped out the distance, Penzance to St John’s, with drawings and images. Has it helped you all with the challenge being able to visualise the exact location you would be at and by being able to say you have passed through several countries?
Yes, the stages helped – 2,200 miles of only ocean is a tough ask. It has also given us a chance to talk about some of the ocean and seafarer issues along the way in our updates – hopefully these have been interesting to our donors/supporters.
*How far are you now into your challenge?
We are nearing the end of the challenge now, we have just over a week left to go, with around 400 miles to cover still. Tired muscles, aching backsides and trying to keep things going mentally are a challenge, especially as the weather is getting hotter.
You have so far raised an incredible £1,830! Have you been surprised by the feedback and donations you have received?
We have been delighted by the response so far, as mentioned earlier, many of our network donated to our earlier fund-raising call back in April too, so we really appreciate that. This time has been mainly friends and family both in the UK and Japan, but also from others in the US, Canada and Europe too.
What is the total fundraising goal you’re aiming for?
We already topped our initial goal of £1000, and if we can raise over £2000 that would be fantastic. There are thousands of stranded seafarers unable to return to their families, medical emergencies and support for those families in India, Philippines, Africa and the Pacific islands, so if we can get more, that would be great.
Have there been any major obstacles during this challenge and how have you been able to overcome them?
We have been really lucky with the weather, a few rainy days but the Atlantic (Maidstone) weather has been brilliant during lockdown. Heat was an issue early on, but probably the main thing has been mentally keeping things up, and we have all tried to encourage and occasionally name-and-shame each other into keeping up the challenge.
How difficult was the challenge to maintain and how, as a family, were you able to motivate yourselves to do this in your own back garden rather than, say, watching a movie altogether or getting a takeaway?
It has been tough at times, especially before we reached half way, as the early stages were much slower as none of us are rowers, so it took time. We still do quite a few things together, and taking it in turns outside is a way for us to help motivate each other – listening to a lot of music, podcasts etc to while away the time.
Is it fair to say that lockdown has brought you all even closer together?
The family has been great, we have come together around the challenge. Most of the time, I have been taking the early morning shift from five or six o’clock until starting work, then the kids would alternate during the day, then in the evening my wife would join the mix and we would fit in a family meal. Early morning coffee in the garden as a couple has become a fixture for my wife and I, which is great. The progress board is a regular talking point too, and I am quite proud to have held the daily record for about 8 days until my eldest son pipped me a few days ago, and I think that will probably stay that way.
Has this challenge sparked any more potential future family fundraising ideas?
Possibly a record attempt at sleeping after this long 60-day challenge. I think we will wait and see, if there is a second lockdown, we might take a stab at the Pacific (or maybe downgrade to doing the Medway 😉).
The Amazing Allwrights completed their fundraising challenge on 3rd August, successfully raising £2,132 with 28 supporters in 55 days. To find out more, including more information on why they chose to fundraise for this cause, visit their Crowdfunder page. A massive thank you to everyone who supported the family, and an incredible well done to Chiemi, Gavin, Mathew, Hannah and Leo! This is exactly the kind of heartwarming news which makes Maidstone such a wonderful community.