Four Guelph Royal LePage agents fundraised $27,894 for the Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis Centre after trekking 100km across the Sahara Desert in Morroco.
The venture, organized in support of the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, saw local real estate agent David Halls along with his wife Robin-Lee Norris, real estate agent Ariana Chhina and John Van Buskirk trek for five days straight, seven hours a day across the sand in the desert climate.
All agents participating through the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation covered their own travel costs to give every penny raised to local shelters.
“It’s quite overwhelming to think that they crossed the Sahara desert supporting abused women and children. It’s phenomenal,” said Sly Castaldi, executive director of Guelph-Wellington Women in Crisis.
“We’re incredibly grateful for their ongoing support.”
Royal LePage has been really active in the Shelter Foundation for years with agents going to places like Machu Pichu, Iceland and even to the ancient Inca capital of Cusco in previous years.
Halls had previously said that part of the experience of trekking to these distant places is to deliberately put oneself in an uncomfortable position because most people are blessed to never have to leave their homes and go into a shelter.
Castaldi says the organization was in no way expecting this large gift.
“The good folks at Royal LePage are just phenomenal human beings,” says Castaldi.
“It’s overwhelming what they’ve done for us as an organization.”
Castaldi says the funds will go towards operating programs and services in the shelters. She says although the centre receives government funding, it only covers 85 per cent of the costs associated with running the operations and thus the centre heavily relies on fundraising.
“We have to raise the last 15 per cent just to meet our bottom line,” says Castaldi.
“It goes toward making sure the doors are open, the bills are paid and all the programs are operating, so it’s really important.”
