Tony Lawrence, the director for Children and Youth Ministries for the Anglican Church in Southern Africa, will take to the open road on Friday 8 September to also celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Leliebloem House Children’s Home.
The home assists 60 children between four and 18 years old in a residential care programme in Mitchells Plain, Athlone, Wynberg and Paarl, among others.
The kids are placed into this alternative programme by the court because they have been found in need of care and protection, and services in the community are not accessible.
Tony, 62, who is passionate about youth development, says he first started riding a motorbike five years ago.
“It was just never on my bucket list. My son, Paul, is a biker and one year at Christmas lunch he said he was giving up his superbike and would go for a Harley Davidson,” he explains.
“I asked him if I could take the superbike, but he told me to get a scooter instead. I didn’t like that and was determined to ride a motorbike.”
He laughs when he tells the Daily Voice how he failed his learner’s licence test.
“Hahahaha... but OK, I wrote it again and passed. Then I got a trainer and went for my driving test and passed the first time," he says proudly.
Since then, Tony has been riding the country plat on his bike, saying he is “always prepared” for the long road.
For this fundraising trip, he will be departing from Leliebloem House in Athlone at 6am and make his way towards Grabouw.
He will visit various places on his round trip, including Barrydale, Oudtshoorn and Beaufort West before coming back to Cape Town where he will make a grand entrance at the Garden Court Hotel for a homecoming dinner, hosted by Leliebloem House.
Tony and Leliebloem House are calling on the public to support this initiative by making a donation for every kilometre he travels.
“Donations can start from as little as 10 cents to R1000 per kilometre and all the funds go to the home. People can also follow me on my trips as my GPS coordinates will be posted every 15 minutes.”
If you would like to support, visit www.givengain.com/cc/leliebloemhouse