Facing the seemingly-endless expanse of the Sahara Desert under the sun’s full force was an “incredible experience” for former Paeroa local Jack Keeys.
Even more surreal was living inside a refugee camp for a week, he said, with the Sahrawi people who welcomed him in.
Jack and his partner Amy Strang signed up to compete in the Sahara Marathon solidarity race for the refugee children of Western Sahara.
With bare feet for the final 5km, and a child on his shoulders for the last 500m, Jack finished the race in four hours and in 13th place – out of 67 marathoners from across the world.
Now residing in Toulouse, France, Jack told The Profile he was the first New Zealander to ever complete the run.
“I was extremely proud of my result,” he said. “It was very cool to be the first New Zealander to complete the race… Half of the runners intended to finish at the four-hour mark, and only 13 of us did – highlighting how challenging it was.”
Jack said he had to overcome “some huge mental barriers” while he raced in complete isolation for many kilometres.
“The hardest aspect was definitely the exposure – being in the middle of the desert under the midday sun was scorching. I was drinking two cups of water every 3km and still struggled to hydrate.”
However, the most difficult part of the experience was emotional, not physical, he said.
“Living in one of the world’s largest and most politically complex refugee camps with a local family for an entire week was nothing short of surreal.
“We had no shower, no running water, and lived in tents or under tin-roofed shacks; four of us all sleeping together in a large room. However, we were treated incredibly by our hosts, not as special outsiders, but as family.
“The matriarch would host two tea ceremonies for us per day, we were cooked lovely meals, and neighbours and extended family would visit us to share broken, mixed-language conversations until midnight most evenings,” he said.
Jack and Amy have been raising money for four causes close to their hearts: the Sahara Marathon project supporting camp refugees with special needs; the Sahara Marathon project supporting war orphans in restoring recently flooded Dakhla camp; the New Zealand Refugee Family Reunification Trust; and the Toulouse Refugee support charity in their current home city.
They’ve surpassed their goal of $2500 and as at March 20, have raised $3,740.
“Amy and I were genuinely taken aback by the level of fundraising support. Our friends and families had supported us from the start… but after we began sharing the real-life and person-to-person stories and photos from our time with the Sawhari people and explaining the massive impact a few dollars can make to their education, nutrition, or opportunities, these seem to have resonated and really surged donations,” he said.
“Every donation we receive, we do a little dance and get excited because we know the difference it will make.”
DETAILS: To donate before March 31, visit givealittle.co.nz and search for ‘Jack Keeys’.
BY KELLEY TANTAU
