Are you getting ready for our first walk on Saturday 3 March 2018? Meet our hiking team from St John’s Rehabilitation Hospital and Calvary Hospital also known as Hiking Sistas and the Blister Sisters. We talk to them about why our hiking event that is being kicked off with a day walk from Tasmanian Arch to Fortescue Bay is so important to them and how they’re finding the preparation so far.
Why does our Tasmanian Iconic Walks event resonate with you?
The effects of a stroke on patients and their families are something we are all too familiar with. We are a team of nurses that are privileged to work with stroke survivors and their families in rehabilitation. I don’t think any of us would hesitate to do something worthwhile, to raise funds or awareness for The Stroke Foundation. It’s one of those things, that unless you or a loved one has a stroke, you may be unaware of its effects or the journey ahead for recovery. The more support and awareness available in the community, the better. We hope to support Tasmanian Iconic Walks in realising their dream of raising funds for The Stroke Foundation. The walk itself seems like the perfect way to go about it. Physical activity, whilst enjoying our beautiful Tasmanian coastline and appreciating the fact that, we simply can.
The reasons we are participating in the Tasmanian Iconic Walk this year?
A personal challenge to ourselves, a commitment to fitness, a love of our beautiful state and to raise awareness of stroke, a cause close to our hearts. We witness the long and difficult journey ahead after stroke. It’s not easy for those affected, it’s often heart breaking, but also inspiring. Our work requires a multidisciplinary approach and goal setting.
How are the fundraising and physical preparations going?
Our team goal is to raise money to assist The Stroke Foundation in educating the community about signs of stroke and supporting those affected. For us, we see first hand how essential early rehabilitation and ongoing support is. We have been overwhelmed by the support shown to us from friends, family, and colleagues so far. By simply sharing our Everyday Hero pages on Facebook, we received many donations, giving us the kick start we needed. This has been motivational, to say the least, and both teams are hoping to continue to build our tallies up until walk day.
As we have 2 teams, there has been discussion and some friendly banter/rivalry in the workplace. All in good fun of course, but it keeps it fresh and talked about. We are working on a couple of fundraising ideas in the workplace too, pushing ourselves that bit extra, now that it is February. This is a great way to involve colleagues that may not be participating in the actual walk. Again, their support is amazing, it’s a big ward and everyone is behind us. Donations to our fundraising, words of encouragement and little snack packages for participants on the day. It really does feel like a big team.
Being shift workers, it’s not the easiest to organise everyone to be free at the same time for walks. We are relying on a message group we set up and seeing each other at work to check in on progress and questions. We are feeling on track for prep, everyone has their own regime. We are arranging a group walk soon and a relaxed get together to go over hiking gear, first aid pack etc for the day.
We are blessed to be able to participate in this hike in a stunning part of Tasmania, we are doing this for those that no longer can and those that have the goal of getting there
Team bonding
Initially, I asked a couple of like-minded colleagues if they would be interested in forming a work team, they were keen, so the first hurdle over with! Once we had our first team, we shared Tasmanian Iconic Walks on Facebook. Then discussed it in the workplace and before we knew it, there was interest and 2 teams were doing this fabulous thing!
Bonding, well, I feel it’s safe to say that each one of us is looking forward to this. For some, it’s a big challenge and there’s a genuine supportive feel on the ward. The message group is essential for questions as they pop up and a bit of support or a laugh when needed. We are used to working as a team. So, it’s pretty great being able to do something outdoors and build on that. We expect some ups and downs and plenty of laughs on the day. The best thing is knowing what a great cause this is and that we have so much support behind us. Thank you!
Want to join our hiking event of the year?
It’s not too late. Registration is still open until February 24 unless sold out earlier. So organise your workplace team and register now.