It is with great sadness that we report that Gizele Price's mother has passed away and Gizele has ended her epic bike trip from Cairo to Cape Town. Gizele wrote on her blog on April 23rd: "I am posting this from the Windhoek Airport, as I await a flight home to Toronto. My Mother’s life journey ended this morning, and I must end this one too. For the record, my Mother loved Africa, and passed on her love of this continent to me, and she was my biggest fan. Once African, always African… it part of our blood and bones. So Mum, I did this ride for you and because of you…I leave your spirit on this Continent. When I am together again, I will post a few pictures from Botswana. Thank you to the many, many people that supported me on this tremendous ride. I will never forget you. g xxx"
The board and staff at Seva Canada send Gizele and her family our deepest sympathy.
Gizele camping by the Red Sea at the start of her 10,000 km journey. Gizele endured many discomforts and challenges, ranging from rock-throwing kids, to 45 degree Celsius temperatures, to bathing in 100 ml of water. Her blog posts of her journey are amazing to read.
Gizele is our hero. Her journey with Tour d'Afrique has been inspiring and humbling to follow. Gizele's fundraising campaign, using her ride to bring sight to those in Africa, has been tremendous. You can see her giving page at bit.ly/Cairo2Capetown4Sight. We at Seva Canada never had the pleasure of meeting Gizele's mom, but we traded many emails and phone calls. The love and pride that Marilia Price felt for her daughter was apparent in every syllable. We hope it will be of some comfort to Gizele, Denis and the rest of the Price family to know that thanks to Gizele and her many supporters, hundreds of people in eastern Africa will have their eyesight restored and will be able to see the faces of their loved ones and the beauty of their own lands.
Boy in Blantyre, Malawi after cataract surgery. Photo courtesy of Paolo Patruno
If you know of anyone who would be interested in her story or in helping her meet her fundraising objective please pass this on.... ://bit.ly/Cairo2Capetown4Sight Gizele, you will remain our hero and our hearts go out to you.
Seva board member, Tom Voss, on the left, knows what long distance bike trips are like and is an ardent supporter of Gizele. Here Tom is shown with his wife Jane Harris and friend Gregg Johnson on their bike trip this spring in Vietnam.
