A COUPLE from Launceston will be cycling 120 miles as part of The Big Ride for Palestine 2018 to support the Sport for Girls in Gaza project.
Roger and Jane Creagh-Osborne from Launceston are joining hundreds of other riders this summer to take part in The Big Ride for Palestine on August 3 to 5.
The Big Ride is an initiative set up by cyclists and supporters of Palestine three years ago to raise awareness for the Palestinian cause, as well as money for the Middle East Children’s Alliance (MECA), to buy sporting equipment for children in Gaza.
MECA specialises in the rehabilitation of children in Gaza, traumatised by war and occupation. Since 2015 The Big Ride has successfully raised more than £100,000 for MECA, and this year Roger and Jane are hoping to add to that total through donations and sponsorship.
Jane said: “As well as raising money for equipment to assist highly traumatised children in Gaza it is also important that people become aware of the situation in occupied Palestine”
The Gaza vice president of the Red Crescent Society and Gaza director of MECA, Dr Mona El-Farra, had this to say about The Big Ride: “With every mile you ride, you are protesting against 70 years of Israeli ethnic cleansing of Palestinians. You are sending a message to the Palestinian people in general, and to the people in Gaza in particular, that they are not abandoned.
“You are bringing hope to millions of Palestinian children for whom life has been scarred by trauma and fear. We appreciate your solidarity; we salute you all for your humanity.”
The ride will start from Coventry city centre on Friday, August 3, stopping in Northampton on the Friday night, Luton on the Saturday night, before arriving into central London mid-afternoon on Sunday, August 5 — a total of 124 miles over three days.
Roger said: “This is a natural extension of my previous Climate Vision rides to Paris and Bonn and my work with the Launceston Refugee group. All of these crises are interconnected and stem from choices our society has made.”
Jane added: “Here in Launceston we may feel detached from the terrible situations in Gaza where residents in their own country are surviving in dire conditions, and in Greece and the rest of Europe with refugees fleeing the conflicts and crises in the Middle East and Africa. By reaching out directly to children, and girls in particular, helping them take part in normal childhood activities like playing sports, we build a real connection”
Joining Roger and Jane from Cornwall will be Euan McPhee who lives in Falmouth and is a veteran of the previous Climate Vision rides with Roger.
If anyone would like to express their support, Roger will be at the Bell Inn in Launceston at about 8.30pm on Thursday, July 26, after the regular Launceston Refugee Support Group meeting (meeting starts at 7.30pm).
To donate to Sport for Girls in Gaza project the ride is promoting go to www.globalgiving.org/projects/sports-for-girls-in-gaza
For those who do donate they are asked to contact Roger on [email protected] so he can keep supports up to date on progress.
For more information on other projects supporting children in Gaza and across the Middle East visit the MECA website www.mecaforpeace.org