Four runners who are taking on a 5,000 kilometre run from Cape York to Wilsons Promontory will be on the Sunshine Coast tomorrow.
They are aiming for a world record and a $1 million fundraising target for Destiny Rescue.
Destiny Rescue is a non-profit organisation founded on the Sunshine Coast in 2001 with a mission to rescue children from human trafficking and sexual exploitation and equip them to stay free.
So far it has rescued more than 27,000 children.
Griffin Hughes, Flinders Cobley, Chelsea Dyer and Nathan Maufe left the tip of Cape York on Saturday August 1, hoping to reach Wilsons Promontory in Victoria, the southernmost point of the Australian mainland, in around 80 days.
All four are running the entire distance together, covering 75 kilometres a day, which is close to two marathons, attempting a world record for the fastest crossing of Australia’s east coast on foot.
“This was never about us,” Mr. Hughes said.
“Every single day, we carry one purpose with us: 476 children are enduring unimaginable pain right now, waiting to be rescued. It’s about raising awareness, saving those children, and giving them a future where hope isn’t just possible, it’s real.”
Destiny Rescue Fundraising Manager Gavin McCulloch said the run would carry the cause the length of the country.
“Every stranger who stops to ask, shares it online, or gives what they can is growing something bigger than any one run, a whole community standing up for children who can’t stand up for themselves. That’s how more children step into freedom,” Mr McCulloch said.
The group will take on a run with the Sunshine Coast community, starting at 6.30am Wednesday at Alex Surf Club and finishing at Sanga Sisters at Mooloolaba.
They will then leave for the run to Brisbane.
