Without doubt that is probably the most stupid thing I have ever done. Nothing could have prepared me for the pain I felt in my ankles and knees for the last 12 miles. Yet despite the pain this was not the worse thing that happened to me. No, the worse thing was getting to the last 600 meters and being over taken by Big Ben, St Pauls Cathedral and The Gherkin. I will never look at those landmarks again in the same way. A massive thank you to everyone who has helped me raise over £3600. That is enough money to set up a whole pre-primary school in Tanzania which will accommodate up to 60 children. I will be in Tanzania next week selecting the next schools we intend to help.

Ps what are the chances of bumping into Keith Smith from Platinum Vending when running with 38,000 over people. Anyway, there we were two vending guys sorting out the problems with the vending industry whilst casually pushing our bodies to their limits in the largest race on Earth. Keith will tell you that I beat his time. What he forgets to mention though is he had a massage half way round. Well done mate great effort.

Sponsor Tim here if you have not already…….http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/TimVarney118

Tim, Director of Revive and Chair of Trustees to EdUKaid organised the ball with some help and encouragement from his industry friends and his family.  To see what a great night that was had by all visit the EdUKaid FaceBook page here  http://www.facebook.com/EdUKaid. If you were there please leave any comments or observations at the end of this post.

Those who travel to Revive through the New Forest can’t help but find the Ponies fascinating, they have free reign. The New Forest Show attracts 100,000’s of people every year and we think it’s impressive that Sophie came top of her equestrian class.! Well done Sophie. Please leave your comments below……

The secret diary of a Vending Operator

About a year ago I was walking through Dar es Salaam, Tanzania when a man shouted “Sunderland”. He was a beggar trying to get my attention. He made me smile so I went and sat next to him and we talked for about 30 minutes. He was actually from Angola, his name was Ibrahim and he had lost one of his legs due to a land mine. He had come to Tanzania to try and find work to pay for an operation on his leg. He had nowhere to live and was sleeping rough in a church yard. This meant that he had no mosquito net and consequently had caught Malaria.

A year later I was walking through the same area and who should be sat on the wall but Ibrahim. He recognised me immediately and introduced me to his friend Ally who is an artist. Both of them were homeless but rather than begging they were trying to sell canvas paintings that Ally had made. They were beautiful and I purchased some to help them. A week later when I bumped into them again they told me that a street gang had attacked them shortly after I had left them and beat them and took their money. These gangs attack anyone who is not a registered street seller and therefore Ibrahim wanted to try and get a licence and start his own business but did not have enough money.

That same week I am walking through a village called Mikindani in Tanzania when a young boy of 16 walks up to me and asks if I can help him. His name is Saudi and his father had died many years ago and recently his mother died during an operation. He was now living with his grandparents and could no longer afford to go to school. He wanted to know if I would help him with his school fees.

Later that week I travelled out to three primary schools and find the classrooms over crowded with children sat on the floor due to a shortage of desks. The teachers are trying to write on broken blackboards and there are no exercise books.

I would not be exaggerating if I said that this was a typical week for one of my many trips to Tanzania for a charity called EdUKaid and the challenge of who to help and how best to help is a constant one. Clearly, just handing out money is not the answer but at the same time doing nothing would go completely against my beliefs. What is interesting though; is I don’t need to find all the answers, quite often I simply have to be the messenger and then something quite incredible happens.

I posted the story about the orphan boy Saudi on Facebook and an old school friend of mine said she would like to cover his school fees. When I got back from Tanzania recently I wondered how on earth EdUKaid could raise the £20,000 we would need to help the three schools I had visited. Two weeks later we hear the news that one of our sponsors based in London had raised £24,000 for us in just two months and are expecting to raise much more over the next 3 years. I’m not sure if I have a solution to help Ibrahim and Ally but if I can help them get started in business to fend for them selves then I will.

It’s incredible, on my own I can achieve very little and yet simply by using the resources I have available to me other people get involved and suddenly the reach of what I could achieve becomes magnified by the people who step forward to do their bit.

To all those in the industry that have helped me so far, I would like to say ‘Thank you’. Because of your generosity, EdUKaid is helping improve the lives of many 1000’s of children in Tanzania. To all those who are involved in their own charity either here or abroad, keep flying the flag and never give up, the generosity of the people you meet will continue to inspire.

Tim Varney

Tim has recently returned from a trip from Tanzania where EdUKaid are based. To find out more about how Revive Support EdUKaid please click here

http://www.revivevending.co.uk/edukaid-charity.php