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Project Island Song’s 12ks of Christmas - Team Rachel

  • One day to go!

      11 December 2025
    Posted by: Project Island Song
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    Tomorrow is the final day, and it’s a big one for all our participants. Those who’ve been building up from 1km will have their biggest run yet, while I’m sure the 12km is not feeling any easier for those who’ve done it 11 times already!

    A few highlights:

    • Jacqui was interviewed on RNZ talking about taking part in the 12ks dressed in her vintage clothing collection.

    https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/nights/audio/2019015751/walking-144-kilometres-in-impeccable-vintage

    • The Northern Advocate ran a story including a focus on Jo’s efforts to clean up 12km of litter in Taipa. Jo (now joined by her husband) has been collecting 5 black bags of rubbish every day!

    https://www.nzherald.co.nz/northern-advocate/news/on-the-up-locals-walk-run-and-pick-up-litter-for-bay-of-islands-fundraiser/OYPBELMJEVCK5CNVBQ6GYKZL5U/

    • Cam has now run 252km over the past 11 days, which is the distance by road from Russell to central Auckland. Mind-blowing!

    • Just to make things a little hotter, Laura (the penguin), Abby (dolphin), and Maryanne (bat), completed some of their kms in costume at the Paihia and Russell Christmas parades!

    Thank you so much to the 281 people who have already donated so generously.

    Wouldn’t it be an incredible boost to the absolute legends taking part in this if we could get to $18k, $19k, or even the full $20k tomorrow?!

    Please support them and help us to get there however you can - chip in a few dollars, or share their efforts far and wide to encourage others!

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  • Day 8 Update

      8 December 2025
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    Hello all 🩷 thank you for following my walking journey and the three generous supporters who have donated in the last few days. I've been very busy at work so updates have been slow, but rest assured I've been chasing those kilometres!

    Days 4 and 5 were spent running up and down the Mt Stewart Reserve in Taihape, enjoying the beautiful weather and views up on the summit while catching my breath (pictured)

    Days 6-7 were a whirlwind and unfortunately I didn't save my tracking info onto my Fit app, but I definitely walked more than six kilometers per day! Finished up Saturday night with a midnight stroll to view the super moon 🌙

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    • 09/12/2025 by Jo Hay

      Thanks for sharing what you're up to.

  • Day Three Update 🩷

      3 December 2025
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    Today I'll be running - yes running - up the beautiful native bush reserve in Taihape known as Mt Stewart THREE times, for a combined distance of 3.5 kilometers. Thunderstorms are forecasted but I'm not worried - I'll bring a jacket and take a photo of the summit as proof for my donators ☺️

    I'd like to thank the four lovely people who donated to my fundraiser in the first 24 hours - we've raised $104 dollars so far, which is amazing and humbling.

    Since I haven't updated for the previous days, I'd like to highlight what I did and where I went ☺️

    Day 1 (1km) - just strolling about town

    Day 2 (2km) walking around Papakai bush reserve in Taihape with my dog and father (photo included)

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  • We just reached our $12,000 goal on Day 3!

      3 December 2025
    Posted by: Project Island Song
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    Oh my goodness - after an absolutely colossal day yesterday for Give a Little Day, with more than $6,600 donated in 24 hours, we can’t quite believe that we have just reached our initial goal of $12,000 on the morning of Day 3!

    Thank you so much to everyone who has already donated to support our amazing runners and walkers. We’re completely blown away by the number of people getting behind the 12ks this year.

    A big welcome to our newest participants - Elsie, Kevin, Michelle, Rachel, Sandra, Sarah, and Steph.

    We’ve now got a whopping 20 people taking part which is fantastic, and between them they will be walking or running a combined 2,166km by 12th December!

    This is longer than the length of New Zealand (1,600km), and just slightly more than the distance between Sydney and Auckland (2,156km)!

    What now? Well with 9 days of walking and running still to go, we have just raised the overall goal to $20,000.

    Can we get there? We really don’t know but we hope so! This would be a truly phenomenal amount of money to raise for our collective mahi on the islands.

    Please continue to get behind all our participants, especially as the feet start to blister and the legs begin to tire! Spread the word to friends and family, walk alongside them (literally or figuratively), and be cheerleaders for their awesome efforts. Your support will keep them going.

    Spare an extra thought for all our participants today who may have to time their runs/walks well to avoid getting very soggy!

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