This car is a critical necessity, as it will not only assist ICEA in the
day-to-day operations of the charity but also allow us to transport our ‘stay
at school’ incentives to remote schools across the Kimberley. It will also be a means of transport for ICEA
volunteers who organise leadership camps in the region, giving young
Australians the opportunity to be immersed in Aboriginal culture; in order to
build mutual respect, cultural awareness and, ultimately, achieve action
towards Reconciliation throughout Australia.
Wednesday 8th of Feb: ICEA Rottnest Channel Swim Meeting
The first meeting for the ICEA Rottnest Swim Team was held down at
North Cott Surf Life Saving Club where the swimmers came down for a quick chat
about fundraising and promoting the swim as well as size fittings for the ICEA
bathers! We took some footage of the swimmers and a few photos for their
profiles. Lily Christou (aka absolute gun designer and computer wiz!) uploaded
ICEA photos onto the Facebook page to begin promoting our swimmers and getting
some donations!
The
Promo Video
Leoni Woodfin was the brains behind the idea of launching a video
to promote the ICEA Rottnest Swim Team. She scripted and edited footage that
was taken at various venues to produce an epic two minute promotional video. A
big thanks to Sue and Mark Conlan for lending us their pool for the shoot and
Lochie Boyd for allowing us into his house on a lazy Sunday. If you haven’t
already seen it, the video can be viewed by clicking the below link:
Thursday 16th of Feb: Photo for the Western Australian
All the swimmers met at Cottesloe Beach at 7am to get a photo for
the Western Australian. Both the West Australian and The Post, a local
community paper, posted articles on the ICEA Rottnest Channel swim team. This
gave us even more exposure and kept the strong momentum for the fundraising
going. As the charity is a youth run organisation and everyone is a volunteer,
our resources are limited and we really rely upon the generous donations of
community members. Too receive this level of publicity was great and we thank
both newspapers for their support.
Thursday 23rd of Feb: Pasta night
It was two nights before the Rottnest Swim, meaning it was time
for the swimmers to carb load! Noel Nannup, a Ngugar Elder was at this event.
He gave a talk on the significance of the passage of water between the mainland
and Rottnest Island to the aboriginal people, spoke of the wildlife that may be
encountered on the crossing and wished all the swimmers a safe journey. It is
always such a pleasure to have Noel at ICEA events. His talks are always a
truly special experience as he has such a strong connection to his country and
his culture and we are very thankful for the time he dedicates to us.
Dinner was served with an abundance of lasagne and salad. Thanks
to the kitchen helpers Kat Conlan, Caitlyn Fogarty, Clementine Packer and
Madeleine Street for preparing and serving the pasta.
During dinner, Lockie gave a talk about the aim of ICEA and what
it means to be an ICEA ambassador - Reconciliation;
mutual respect for all Australians. The swimmers left the pasta night full
bottle on their dreamtime stories, the ICEA purpose and had fuel to take on The
Rottnest Channel Swim together.
Saturday
25th of Feb
The big day was here. Despite many doubts about whether the event
was going ahead due to the inaccurate weather forecasts, the conditions ended
up being ideal and the swimmers hit the water running! We had 15 boats bearing
the ICEA flag and plenty of supporters on the beach or on their way to the pub.
Each Team swam their hearts out for the cause and everyone crossed the finish
line. Sean Carter and Kate McPherson came first in the mixed duo; a sensational
effort! Jeremy Telfer and Michael McCarrey came third in the Male Duo teams so
a big shout out to them. Jemma Ford, Mel Smith, Beth Johns and Jess Cohen came
second in their category and won a whopping $500 that they donated to ICEA.
These girls also held a cake stall the weekend before the swim and raised $330
- so get special acknowledgment for
their enthusiasm and team spirit. All the athletes were met by supporters as
they crossed the finish line and celebrated at the Rottnest pub in the evening.
The whole event was a great success, particularly because it was the first ICEA
Rottnest Swim Fundraiser. Next year we hope is going to be bigger and better
with even more dedicated swimmers and support crew. We will have the everyday
hero account set up so it will make the donation system much easier and
efficient.
There was a Sundowner held a month after the Rottnest Swim to get
together and thank the supporters and swimmers for their contributions. It was also
an opportunity for reflection, we discussed strengths of the fundraiser and room
for improvement next year.
A very special thanks needs to be made to the biggest donators:
Tracey and Dermont Collopy, Gary Johnston, Ben Elton, Tim Leunig, Kim’s Food
and Peter Connell. On behalf of ICEA we would like to thank you so much for
your very generous donations.
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| Zac Vinten and Jemma Ford |
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| Harry Howe and Jackson Shaw |
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| Ellie Kemp, Jessie O'Mahony, Addy Nelson & Sarah Northey |
We would also like to thank our sponsors Vorgee and Claremont
Sports.
The swimmers: Sean Carter, Kate Macpherson, Andrew Greatrex, Kailan Durrant, Harry
Howe, Jackson Shaw, James Erb, David Alston, Cal Foulner, Sam Fogarty, Jeremy
Telfer, Michael McCarrey, Tom VanBeem, Zac Vinten, Tim Connell, Michael
Kingsbury, Tom Smirk, Lochie Boyd, Hugo Roberts, Ellie Kempe, Jessie O'Mahony,
Adelaide Nelson, Sarah Northey, Jemma Ford, Mel Smith, Beth Johns, Jess Cohen,
Jessica Pleydell-Bouverie, Archie Cooke, Harry McGregor, Indi Read, Matteo
Bellingeri, David McMorrow, Simon Crispe, Jarrad Heller, Henry Cooke, Maria
Kailis, Patrick Lilburne, Lee Christinson, Brittany Pope, Katie Scheer, Em
McCallum, Tess Kauffman, Amy Barber, Dan Fraser, Candis Fraser, Zeef Reeves.
The Organisers: Lockie Cooke, Leoni Woodfin, Lily Christou, Caroline Sandover and Monica Pleydell-Bouvere
