| Refugee Walk Raises Awareness and Funds! For over an hour on Sunday, April 17, parts of Half Moon Bay facilitated the journey of some "Lost Boys" of Sudan as participants passed through a War Zone, an enemy occupied village and a river filled with crocodiles to gain a better understanding of the plight of more than 35 million people uprooted from their homes and communities throughout the world. |
| Click on the thumbnails below (taken by Sam Martin) for a closer look. |
| To read the reflection that began the Refugee Walk, click here. |
Coastside Catholic Worker
4th Annual Coastside CROP WALK
Swimming across a crocodile infested river and hopping through a war zone
because you stepped on a landmine are normally not part of the typical
weekend adventure on the Coast of San Mateo County, California. Yet, with
a little imagination and the desire to better understand the plight of displaced
persons worldwide, about 40 local residents did just that Sunday in the 4th
annual Coastside CROP WALK.
The traditional walk against hunger was enhanced this year by an added
educational element that allowed participants to role-play various
components of the life of a refugee. An interfaith event sponsored by
Church World Service (CWS) to raise funds and awareness to stop hunger
both in the local community and around the world, the local walk was
organized by representatives from the Coastside Jewish Community,
Coastside Lutheran Church, Community United Methodist Church (C.U.M.C.)
of Half Moon Bay, Holy Family Episcopal Church, and Our Lady of the Pillar
Catholic Church (O.L.P).
The Refugee Walk, which began and ended at O.L.P., was an interactive
experience. As walkers encountered bilingual signs along the route, they
followed the instructions correlating to their colored armbands to simulate
some of the situations refugees throughout the world deal with. According to
CWS, there are almost 15 million refugees and 25 million internally displaced
persons worldwide, forced to flee their homes due to war, persecution,
natural disaster and famine.
Many CROP Walkers Sunday embraced the spirit of the walk. Passing
through the “war zone” set up between Cunha Intermediate School and the
library caused some to run from imaginary soldiers while others covered one
eye due to a shrapnel injury. When the walkers strayed from the planned
route, organizers re-directed the wanderers, “This way! Keep moving! You
are not welcome here!” It was easy to imagine the loss of personal control
and direction many displaced people are forced to endure.
“Get down! Snipers!” someone exclaimed at one point, following the
accidental pop of a balloon. A few walkers nearby ducked and then
scrambled to the shadows of a building, feigning fear.
At the Water Stop, located at C.U.M.C., CROP Walkers were informed that
refugees must constantly deal with the effects of war. Then they were
instructed to “rely on the kindness of others” to get water since the village
was enemy occupied.
Just when the participants thought they had the situation figured out, serving
their friends and family as they were being served, organizers made another
announcement. Those who drank water from the clear cups had just drunk
contaminated water. For the next couple blocks, many hobbled along with
one eye covered to simulate the physical toll of that reality.
As the CROP WALK wound its way north on Main Street, the walkers
encountered another obstacle when they reached the Stone Pine Center to
cross the street and return south. Volunteer Paul Carmody of Kuk Sool Won
held signs telling crossers that refugees must take risks to get to safety and
warning that the road “is really a crocodile infested river…swim across it.”
When participants reached the other “bank”, volunteer Sam Martin randomly
slapped CROP WALK stickers on some, announcing that a crocodile had just
bitten them.
Kathy Niece, one of the walk’s organizers, said tongue-in-cheek that despite
the war zone, crocodiles and contaminated water, no one required any
medical assistance. (Volunteer Sam Lippert was standing by to provide First
Aid to any CROP Walker who may have needed it.)
Niece noted that the goal of this year’s walk was to raise awareness along
with money. “It was a fun way to try to better understand what many people
struggle with.”
She said that close to $3,000 was already given by donors who sponsored
the CROP Walkers, with a couple of the local groups still collecting pledges.
The money will be used for international relief efforts in more than 80
countries, including the United States, with a particular focus this year on
tsunami relief and the crisis in Sudan. Locally, 25 percent of the funds
raised will support Magdalene House, the Coastside Catholic Worker, which
reaches out to help those in need on the Coast from Montara to Pescadero.
“The thing is, we all get to go back to our homes and know there is food and
a bed waiting for us. More than 35 million refugees around the world don’t
even have that very basic human right,” Niece said.
“I believe folks left the experience with some sense of solidarity with those
anonymous faces we normally only encounter in the news.”
Swimming across a crocodile infested river and hopping through a war zone
because you stepped on a landmine are normally not part of the typical
weekend adventure on the Coast of San Mateo County, California. Yet, with
a little imagination and the desire to better understand the plight of displaced
persons worldwide, about 40 local residents did just that Sunday in the 4th
annual Coastside CROP WALK.
The traditional walk against hunger was enhanced this year by an added
educational element that allowed participants to role-play various
components of the life of a refugee. An interfaith event sponsored by
Church World Service (CWS) to raise funds and awareness to stop hunger
both in the local community and around the world, the local walk was
organized by representatives from the Coastside Jewish Community,
Coastside Lutheran Church, Community United Methodist Church (C.U.M.C.)
of Half Moon Bay, Holy Family Episcopal Church, and Our Lady of the Pillar
Catholic Church (O.L.P).
The Refugee Walk, which began and ended at O.L.P., was an interactive
experience. As walkers encountered bilingual signs along the route, they
followed the instructions correlating to their colored armbands to simulate
some of the situations refugees throughout the world deal with. According to
CWS, there are almost 15 million refugees and 25 million internally displaced
persons worldwide, forced to flee their homes due to war, persecution,
natural disaster and famine.
Many CROP Walkers Sunday embraced the spirit of the walk. Passing
through the “war zone” set up between Cunha Intermediate School and the
library caused some to run from imaginary soldiers while others covered one
eye due to a shrapnel injury. When the walkers strayed from the planned
route, organizers re-directed the wanderers, “This way! Keep moving! You
are not welcome here!” It was easy to imagine the loss of personal control
and direction many displaced people are forced to endure.
“Get down! Snipers!” someone exclaimed at one point, following the
accidental pop of a balloon. A few walkers nearby ducked and then
scrambled to the shadows of a building, feigning fear.
At the Water Stop, located at C.U.M.C., CROP Walkers were informed that
refugees must constantly deal with the effects of war. Then they were
instructed to “rely on the kindness of others” to get water since the village
was enemy occupied.
Just when the participants thought they had the situation figured out, serving
their friends and family as they were being served, organizers made another
announcement. Those who drank water from the clear cups had just drunk
contaminated water. For the next couple blocks, many hobbled along with
one eye covered to simulate the physical toll of that reality.
As the CROP WALK wound its way north on Main Street, the walkers
encountered another obstacle when they reached the Stone Pine Center to
cross the street and return south. Volunteer Paul Carmody of Kuk Sool Won
held signs telling crossers that refugees must take risks to get to safety and
warning that the road “is really a crocodile infested river…swim across it.”
When participants reached the other “bank”, volunteer Sam Martin randomly
slapped CROP WALK stickers on some, announcing that a crocodile had just
bitten them.
Kathy Niece, one of the walk’s organizers, said tongue-in-cheek that despite
the war zone, crocodiles and contaminated water, no one required any
medical assistance. (Volunteer Sam Lippert was standing by to provide First
Aid to any CROP Walker who may have needed it.)
Niece noted that the goal of this year’s walk was to raise awareness along
with money. “It was a fun way to try to better understand what many people
struggle with.”
She said that close to $3,000 was already given by donors who sponsored
the CROP Walkers, with a couple of the local groups still collecting pledges.
The money will be used for international relief efforts in more than 80
countries, including the United States, with a particular focus this year on
tsunami relief and the crisis in Sudan. Locally, 25 percent of the funds
raised will support Magdalene House, the Coastside Catholic Worker, which
reaches out to help those in need on the Coast from Montara to Pescadero.
“The thing is, we all get to go back to our homes and know there is food and
a bed waiting for us. More than 35 million refugees around the world don’t
even have that very basic human right,” Niece said.
“I believe folks left the experience with some sense of solidarity with those
anonymous faces we normally only encounter in the news.”
You can still be a part of the Coastside CROP WALK and "walk with
the world"! To make a secure donation, CLICK HERE.
the world"! To make a secure donation, CLICK HERE.
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