Hope in Bangladesh

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I thought I would find desperation but I found hope. I thought I was about to experience heartbreak but instead there was expectation of a better future. Don’t get me wrong, it was still an enormously emotional day but yesterday was a lot different than I imagined it would be.

Where is the hope?

What do you do when everyone you thought you could trust turns their back on you? Where do you turn when you have no home and no hope?

For many homeless young women in Bangladesh the only place to go is the streets. They’re young, some very young, they’re vulnerable and many end up being sexually exploited or even sold into prostitution. Many of the most desperate are those who are pregnant or who have young children.

This is where SIMaid’s Girls off the Streets project steps in.

The past doesn’t have to dictate the future.

Yesterday I visited a centre with many happy, beautiful young ladies who have found care, trust and a purpose. They’ve been rescued from the kind of abuse that’s marked their lives to this point. They’ve found someone who will care for their health needs, help with their babies, give them educational training as well as skills that will prepare them for a far more optimistic future.

I also visited the area where many used to live. An open street side area full of desperate people, many begging for the essentials of life. The difference between those in SIMaid’s project and those still on the streets was stark. It wasn’t hard to imagine that so many more young, vulnerable women could know safety and care if only there were more resources available for the work SIMaid is doing.

Lives are being changed.

The photo above shows just one of the young women who have had their lives transformed. Her life on the streets has become a life of learning skills that will lead to a hope filled future. Through Girls off the Street she can earn money to create a real home for her and her children.

When you support SIMaid, you’re supporting hope and I know that if you could have only spent five minutes with the ladies we met yesterday, if you’d heard their stories, if you’d seen the joy in their faces, you’d become a passionate supporter of Girls off the Streets.



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Let’s Get Serious

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(This post was written while on the way to Bangladesh but has only just been posted due to there being no easy access to Internet where I travelled in Bangladesh.)

It’s truly hard to believe that yesterday morning I was in Perth. It seems like so much time has past.

I only had little over a day and a half in Kuala Lumpur but it seemed like quite a holiday. Together with Kieran, I saw some amazing sights, including the very impressive Petronas Towers, lots and lots of shops and much more.

We were treated to a rather incredible lunch by Renee. It was a dim sum Chinese meal which included a variety of delicious treats. I can now officially say that I have tried chicken’s feet. Not only did I try them, I very much enjoyed them.

Let’s get serious

With our very short stay in Kuala Lumpur at an end it was time to head to the airport to fly out to Bangladesh. We’re getting closer to seeing the Girls off the Streets project.

With the city choked by traffic, the company arranging our transfer to the airport had to enlist another driver. The original couldn’t make it through the traffic and the stand only just made it. After battling the roads he got to us around half an hour late the proceeded to head to the airport at lightning speed. Well maybe not lightning but 120 in an 80 zone sort of qualifies.

Our driver need not have bothered. After boarding our flight we waited … and waited. Eventually we were told we had to leave the plane to board another. Inconvenient but better than them finding a fault with the aircraft after taking off.

Two hours later we boarded another plane and took off. I’m writing this post almost 12000 metres above the earth as we travel at over 900 kilometres an hour.

What’s ahead of us?

I’ve explained before why I’m heading to Bangladesh and then onto India. I want to see how SIMaid is working to bring hope and healing to girls who have been rescued from forced exploitation and prostitution.

I don’t really know what’s waiting for us but I’m sure it’ll be confronting and I’m hoping it’ll break my heart. I want to feel some of the pain behind the stories of the girls who have been trafficked so that I’m even more motivated to speak out on their behalf.

Once I’ve heard some of this stories I want to share them and I hope they’ll break your heart too so that you join with me and many others to bring freedom and hope to girls who have been forced into the most degrading lives imaginable. Together it is possible to do something.



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Brain Vacations

Summer’s kicked in here in Australia and it’s the time of year when thoughts turn to holidays. Tomorrow’s my last day at work for the year and on Monday I fly away. With that in mind, I’m wondering where your mind travels when you start to think about holidays. Is there somewhere you’ve been that you’d like to visit again or is there somewhere you’ve always wanted to see?

As I’ve mentioned before in my post Girls off the Streets, I’m getting ready to head to Bangladesh and India to see the work that SIMaid is doing to rehabilitate girls who have been rescued from forced prostitution.

I know that it’ll be a very confronting trip but I’m also looking forward to being back in India. I’ve visited twice before and I just love the country, its people, the food, the sights. I’ll even be dropping in on the Taj Mahal for the third time.

I can’t believe that our departure is just days away. Very early on Monday morning I’ll be in the air heading for Malaysia on the way to Bangladesh and India.

When you’re thinking about holidays where does your mind go? Is it overseas or somewhere in your own country? I’d love to hear where your brain goes for vacations.



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Raising Hope

Over the coming months I’ll be part of three very different projects. Each project aims to bring hope to different people in very different circumstances.

I need to be completely upfront and say that I need your support to make each of these projects worthwhile. Yes, I’m raising funds but the funds that are raised will help to spread hope into places where it’s desperately needed. Please indulge me long enough to read about each project and then take action in supporting one or more of them.

Whatever you can afford to contribute will help in changing lives.

Morning Cafe Cancer Ride 2012

From the 13th to the 20th of October I’ll once again be taking part in the Morning Cafe Cancer Ride for Cancer Council Western Australia. I’ll be cycling over 500 kilometres from Albany to Perth. The ride follows the success of rides held over the last few years. This will be our fourth ride highlighting the cancer journey of a number of people and raising money to fight cancer. If you’re in Australia your donation is tax deductible. Even if you’re not, the work that Cancer Council WA is doing is making a difference throughout the world through some highly regarded research projects. Just head to the webpage and click donate. My aim is to raise $1000 for Cancer Council WA.

Girls Off the Streets

In December I’ll be traveling to Bangladesh and India to learn more about the Girls Off the Streets initiative through SIMaid. In Bangladesh there are approximately 500 000 children living on the streets due to poverty or abuse. Many girls who live on the streets are sexually exploited. The Indian Government states there are 2.8 million people prostituted in India, but human rights groups claim it is more like 15 million. 200 girls are entering into the sex trade every day with 80% of them doing so against their own free will. I’ll be traveling to both countries with SIMaid to witness the work they do to stop trafficking and sex slavery while transforming the lives of young girls rescued. My role will be as a storyteller, communicating the need online, on radio and to churches back here in Australia. I need to raise money for my travel costs (around $2500 – $3000) and if you’d like to contribute please email me via my Contact Page so that I can let you know where to direct your money.

Great Ocean Road Challenge 2013

In February I’ll be taking part in the Great Ocean Road Challenge for the second time, cycling around 300 kilometres to raise much needed funds for Compassion. Having seen first hand, both in Haiti and Dominican Republic, how effective Compassion’s work is, I am determined to do more to help. That’s why I’ll be riding 290 kilometres in three days and I need your support. By sponsoring my efforts on the challenge you’ll be releasing children from poverty. You’ll be giving children a real chance at life. Please visit my fundraising page and make a contribution. Maybe you can afford to sponsor me for a dollar a kilometre, maybe 50 cents a kilometre, or perhaps you’d just like to donate a set amount. My goal for this ride is to raise $2500.

I’ll write more about each project over the next few months but my strong desire is that one or more of these projects will capture your heart and imagination and you’ll help me in raising hope for others.



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