A team of 30 recently completed a gruelling 70km running, kayaking and hiking challenge in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines to raise more than £100,000 for the Sandals Foundation Island Challenge.
The money raised from the Island Challenge – Saint Vincent 2024 will be donated to the paediatric unit at Saint Vincent’s Milton Cato Memorial Hospital (MCMH) via the Sandals Foundation.
Karl Thompson, managing director of Unique Vacations UK Ltd, sales and marketing representatives of Sandals Resorts, and his colleague Graeme Saunders, lead senior manager for groups and corporate, organised the event for a team from the UK, Canada, the US and the Caribbean.
The four-day challenge consisted of a 17km run on the island of Bequia, on day one (October 11); a 15km run followed by a 11km sea kayak on day two; a 22km run on Saint Vincent on day three; and a five-hour 7km uphill hike in the foothills of the island’s active volcano, La Soufrière, with about 50 crossings of the Wallibou River.
The 30 participants also visited the hospital, which is the main healthcare facility for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, to see the difference the money raised will make.
Thompson said: “The idea for this challenge came about after we had completed our inaugural event, the Island Run – Antigua in 2023.
“That was tough, with four back-to-back half marathons over four consecutive days, but this was the hardest physical thing I have ever done.
“The steep terrain paired with the blistering Caribbean heat – and even the storm that we found ourselves battling through on day three – made it even more challenging than we could have imagined.
“Seeing the difference the money will make to families in Saint Vincent and the Grenadine islands made all the tough times worth it and I must admit, it was an incredible way to explore the country’s dramatic landscapes and breath-taking scenery. I’d do it again in a heartbeat.”
Saunders added: “It’s been a truly amazing experience. The Sandals Foundation team who did a lot of the organisation behind the scenes, the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Tourism Authority who helped us organise the route and close the roads, and the team at Sandals Saint Vincent and the Grenadines who accommodated us have all been incredible.”
Karen Zacca, operations director of the Sandals Foundation, commented: “We witnessed an inspiring show of strength and solidarity as athletes from both the UK and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines came together for this meaningful cause.
“The challenge went beyond physical endurance; it was a shared mission to bring hope to children in need of advanced medical care.
“What we saw was a true coming together of people who care about the same thing – paediatric health on Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and support for the Neonatal Clinic at Milton Cato Memorial Hospital.
“The first purchase will be a digital incubator, ensuring that newborns receive the critical care they need from the very start.”
Projects funded by the Sandals Foundation have helped more than 1.1 million people in the Caribbean since the charity was established in 2009.
For more information and to donate to the Island Challenge – Saint Vincent 2024 click here.
