#whoRUprotecting

For those who don’t receive the emails from Bravehearts, here’s the one that went out today. I’m excited to be an Ambassador for Bravehearts and taking part in this years campaign for White Balloon Day.

Dear Sarah Monahan  We are in the middle of one of the most significant historical moments in child protection this country has ever seen. Survivors of childhood sexual assault are finally breaking the silence and telling their stories – many for the first time. The silence, secrecy and shame that are the offender’s best friend are now being challenged like never before. The victims who for too long have been invisible, without recognition, void of an effective response are finally being seen and heard. Get involved with one or all of the events listed in this newsletter and on behalf of the tens of thousands of children and their families that your support reaches – thank you.  Regards, Hetty Johnston Bravehearts Founder and CEO #whoRUprotecting is a national campaign encouraging Australians to act for the protection of the children in their lives.  It might be your son, daughter, niece or nephew, grandchildren, students, a friend’s child or like Hetty – all Aussie kids. Get involved:  Host an event – hold a ‘white’ morning tea, organise a ‘wear white’ day at your child’s school or at your workplace or encourage your community to take part in a ‘white walk’ while raising funds for Aussie kids. Social media selfie – snap a #whoRUprotecting selfie: the selfie requires you to answer the question ‘who are you protecting’ and display the answer in a photograph. Social media – positively promote Bravehearts and White Balloon Day on your social media accounts using the hashtags #whoRUprotecing and #whiteballoonday. There are many more ways you can get involved, just visit www.whiteballoonday.org.au.   Blind man contests Coast corporates in Bravehearts Time Trial   Damien Williams will fly blind, relying on his wingman to navigate the undulating 43km course when he competes in the annual Bravehearts Time Trial on a specially designed tandem bike in November. The father-of-two is one of the first competitors to sign up for the annual event and will race against ORICA-GreenEDGE representatives and a chain of Gold Coast corporates – including Von Bibra Auto Village and Onyx Property Group.   The Bravehearts Time Trial will take place in the picturesque Samford Valley, just west of Brisbane and will feature many of the elements of a professional cycling event including ramp start, motorcycle cameras and timing gates.   To join Damien in this exciting adventure, visit www.braveheartsadventures.org.au.  Marathon Melina set to tackle grueling Bravehearts 777   Melina Blanco is accustomed to triumphing over adversity and will muster all of that determination when she tackles the gruelling Bravehearts 777 – 7 Marathons across 7 states in 7 days. The 20-year-old counselling student will take on the 300km run for the second time to raise funds for Australian children affected by sexual assault. Herself a survivor of this devastating crime which affects one in five Australian children before the age of 18, Melina will run marathons in Perth, Adelaide, Melbourne, Hobart, Canberra, Northern New South Wales and the Gold Coast and aims to raise $7,770, bringing her total amount raised for Bravehearts to almost $20,000.  To join Melina, visit www.braveheartsadventures.org.au.
Ready, Set, Mow! Claude’s on track to raise $700,000         Australia’s favourite mowerman, Claude Harvey is again pushing his customised cutter for child safety– this time from Caboolture to Bundaberg, hoping to bring his total fundraising efforts for Bravehearts to $700,000. The 68-year-old grandfather will visit 30 towns throughout Queensland during his mowerthon which commenced in Caboolture on 27 May. During his 53 day journey he plans to visit such towns as Kilcoy, Kingaroy, Biloela, Gladstone and Gin Gin before concluding his trip on July 18 in Bundaberg and aims to raise $50,000 for Australian children affected by sexual assault.   READ MORE HERE	Ditto! NSW schools get safety savvy with Bravehearts education A personal safety initiative developed by Bravehearts was rolled out to every NSW Government primary school to keep kids safe in a range of situations from bullying to sexual assault. Set to educate around 195,000 NSW students from kindergarten to Year 2, the acclaimedDitto in a Box education pack teaches personal safety skills and underpins children’s instinctive understandings and feelings in a way that is non-confronting, safe and highly effective.  The NSW State Government allocated $268,051 to support the initiative and the implementation of child protection education within the NSW Personal Development, Health and Physical Education curriculum.  It follows an evaluation commissioned by the NSW Department of Education and Communities in November 2013 of Bravehearts acclaimed personal safety program, Ditto’s Keep Safe Adventure (DKSA) show. The Government piloted DKSA in 21 NSW primary schools and commissioned Urbis to undertake an evaluation of the pilot.   Students at Laguna St Public School were the first to receive Bravehearts education resource
Make your donation your legacy    You are encouraged to act during one of the most significant historical moments in child protection this country has ever seen.   Today is the last day of the financial year – please watch and share this personal message from Hetty Johnston, Bravehearts Founder and CEO and make your end of financial year donation your legacy.   This video was created thanks to our media partner Southern Cross Austereo.