ED’S Big, Big, Big Walk for Little Kids made its way through Stanhope, Corop and Elmore on Day 63, September 23, of the 2740km trek from Brisbane to Melbourne.

Army officer Major Edward Orszulak and ACT Fire Rescue senior firefighter Sebastian Boehm began their journey two months ago, departing Brisbane on July 23 with 70 days of walking ahead.

Raising money for Camp Quality, Ed and Seb have a combined 35 years of volunteering experience with the charity, which looks to bring laughter and light to kids with cancer.

“A really good friend of mine rang me one day and said, ‘hey, we’re short on volunteers, you’d be really good at this’,” Ed said.

“I had a lot of spare time on my hands, so I thought, ‘I’ll give it a go’.

“That was 12 and a half years ago, and it was the best decision I’ve ever made.

“Working with these kids and helping them have a good time, makes you realise that all the things we worry about in our day-to-day lives pale into insignificance when you think about what they go through.”

Seb has been involved with Camp Quality for over two decades, inspired by a good friend who had childhood cancer.

“It wasn't until I got into my 20s that I thought I’d be emotionally able to handle going and helping someone like him,” he said.

“I started 25 years ago, volunteering, and we met 12 years ago on (Ed’s) very first camp, and ever since then we’ve been thick as thieves.”

‘ED’S’ represents Ed, David Finney and Seb, Camp Quality volunteers who wanted to do something big for the charity.

Dave and Seb had the idea to do a big walk from Sydney to Melbourne, inviting Ed, who suggested they make it even bigger and start in Brisbane.

In 2017, Dave was medically discharged from the Royal Australian Navy with post-traumatic stress disorder, tragically succumbing to the illness in 2019.

After taking time to regroup, nurse some injuries and get through COVID-19, Ed and Seb decided to begin their big walk, bringing a piece of Dave with them each day.

“We’ve both got photos and some things that we carry every step of the way,” Seb said.

“He’s with us.”

Each day, the pair set off on their 40 to 50km trek, and arrived at Elmore having covered 2594km with only one week to go.

From whale-spotting at Kiama to making snow angels in Perisher and traversing Mount Victoria in the Blue Mountains, there have been plenty of memories made over the past two months.

“Mount Victoria ... it’s just two and a half kilometres of straight up,” Ed said.

“Legs were burning, not really much of a verge to walk on, so contending with cars.”

“It was one of those days, just one foot in front of the other,” Seb said.

“When we went down (near) Gerringong it was blowing an absolute gale ... out of the 11 hours we were walking, it’d be 10 of a headwind that was just smashing us.”

On the way, Ed and Seb have come across many stories of how childhood cancer impacts kids and families, along with Camp Quality’s role in this.

During the difficult moments on the route, they draw on these experiences.

“You’ve got to dig deep,” Ed said.

“Some of the families we meet, the stories they tell us.”

“(It’s) humbling, 100 per cent,” Seb said.

“We’re walking, we haven’t lived the journey that the family is going through, and it’s still changing our perspective on a lot of things.

“I can’t imagine what it’s like, but if we can help a little bit by doing this...”

Ed and Seb credit the crew who support them each day on their big walk, preparing meals, providing medical and physio advice, running their social media and driving alongside them.

“We’ve needed all of them to get where we are,” Ed said.

“We’re just the guys in the middle of the bubble, and they provide everything else around us.”

Thus far, they have raised more than $84,000 for Camp Quality, setting the goal high at $250,000.

Their donations page and social events post-walk are the key fundraisers for the cause.

“It’s the generosity of people,” Ed said.

“The donations we’ve got along the way really help go towards our tally.

“We’ve got a dinner in Melbourne on the night we finish, a cocktail party in Brisbane and a gala ball in Canberra, and that will be our last push.”

While monetary donations are critical to support Camp Quality, the pair are also happy to see awareness for the charity grow through their efforts.

“I love the fact that Ed and I, and our support crew, can influence people like that,” Seb said.

“Obviously, we’re trying to raise a lot of money, too, but if we can get the word out there so if kids get cancer — especially in rural regions — they know that there’s that support for them.

“We see the difference on camps and family weekends ... they just get to be kids. Run around, have fun, laugh and forget about everything.”

To support Ed and Seb and donate to Camp Quality, head to their fundraising page.

Their journey can also be live-tracked through live.trackmelive.com.au/EDSbigwalkforlittlekids/ and their Instagram and Facebook pages are regularly updated.

Yarrawonga Chronicle Google News Panels

Thursday, 2nd May 2024

Your Afternoon Headlines

Publish Panels