Last week, the town of Viborg in Denmark came together to raise funds for children’s education in five villages of Madi, Chitwan.
Hans G N Andersen
Last week, the town of Viborg in Denmark came together to raise funds for children’s education in five villages of Madi, Chitwan. Through a run titled ‘Children in Denmark run for Children in Nepal’ the event saw over a thousand young participants, some along with their parents, to take part in the 4.2 km run.
For parents like Michael Kolthoff the event was the “greatest experience” as their children got to make friends and interact with Nepali children. His daughter, Marie, who completed the race within 45 minutes, was quick to make friends with Pradyal Adhikari, a Nepali boy living in Denmark.
Having been to Nepal no less than three times and also having visited Madi along with his 14 year old son, Kolthoff said he plans to visit soon. “It was so easy staying in a village with children. I was always sure that wherever my son was, there would be friends around him,” said Kolthoff.
With the funds raised in last week’s race, the organisation is planning to arrange for a Bus Library which will tour the five villages continuously, with at least one day in each village. Equipped with books and two staffs, the bus will also host different children’s events once it is in operation.
After a successful event in Denmark, the organisers are now planning for another children’s run. Only this time, the venue will be Madi itself. Jutland Village Development in Nepal’s Lone Peterson, along with co-ordinator of Viborg City Marathon, and Rolf Bücking -the co-ordinator of the children’s run, will be visiting Madi in November to plan for the race to be held on 11 April, 2017.
Selected children from Denmark along with families will also be present during the run next year.
Hans G N Andersen in Viborg
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