A team of 117 people completed a five-day trek in Cambodia this month, raising $1.6 million for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, the company shared.
Participants faced nearly 100 kilometers of jungle trails, rice fields, temples and mountainous terrain in sweltering heat and high humidity. Trekking in four waves over three days, the group encountered mud, blisters, heat rash and jet lag, relying on each other and a farm tractor that transported supplies along the rural route.
“We walk so that others have a path to safety and new beginnings.”
Phil Soper, president and CEO of Royal LePage, joined the trek and praised the team for enduring the physical and emotional challenges of the trek. “We walked through the oppressive jungle heat and along treacherous mud paths; slept with exotic things that slithered, croaked and climbed; and we got comfortable with a lot of doubt – and we did it together,” he said. “Every step we took raised money for our beloved Royal LePage Shelter Foundation. This wasn’t just a hike. It was a statement: We walk so that others have a path to safety and new beginnings.”
Participants also read letters about experiences of intimate partner violence written by fellow hikers, which organizers said provided both a sobering and motivating reminder of the foundation’s mission to support women and children in need of safety and healing.
Inspired to persevere
“Reading these powerful letters every day has re-centered us,” says Tory Brown of Royal LePage Estate Realty in Toronto. “On the first day, the brutal heat almost knocked me down. I honestly had moments where I thought I couldn’t go on anymore. But after hearing the account of the abuse and the resilience experienced by someone next to me, I knew I had to keep going. To keep walking and to raise money so that other women don’t have to experience this senseless violence.”
The trekkers’ trip included stops at temples, pagodas, Kulen Waterfall and Cambodia’s sacred mountain, as well as time at Angkor Wat. Along the way, participants encountered the generosity and hospitality of local Cambodians, who provided support and encouragement.
Top fundraiser collected more than $56,000
David Coccia of Capstone Real Estate Professionals at Royal LePage Royal City Realty in Guelph, Ontario, was named this year’s top fundraiser, raising more than $56,000. “I feel so much gratitude for completing this journey. I am grateful for every donor who has supported me and our mission to make home a safe place for everyone,” he said.
The biennial Challenge for Shelter is one of several fundraising trips organized by the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, following previous trips to Ecuador, the Purcell Mountains, the Sahara, Iceland and Machu Picchu. Participants pay all their travel and drawing costs and must raise a minimum of $6,000 to participate.
The total raised through the foundation’s ‘Challenge for Shelter’ series now exceeds $6.3 million.
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