We were privileged to join the team of Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney walkers on the Cambridgeshire leg of their epic 450-mile cross-UK sponsored walk.
Our Chief Executive Officer, Donna Talbot, and companions Rikki and Josh supported Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney companions Chloe, Jagger and Peter yesterday (Wednesday), with the intention to cover the stretch from Earith to Stretham, a walk of over 10 miles.
Chloe, Jagger and Peter have been battling through torrential rainfall over the past few days as they navigate this extraordinary west to east journey from St David’s in Wales to Ditchingham in South Norfolk, with another team due to complete an additional leg to the coast at Lowestoft.
They are accompanied by Cecile Roberts, CEO of Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney, and Lorie, one of the people responsible for tracking the original Via Beata pilgrimage route.
The team set off from Wales on Monday 26th August and will be returning to South Norfolk next Thursday (10th October), World Homeless Day. They are raising money to support more people out of homelessness and to raise crucial funds to open a social enterprise B&B on their site.
After arriving in Earith, the group stayed at our community on Tuesday evening and were able to enjoy a warm shower and comfy bed. On Wednesday, the walkers were joined by our CEO Donna Talbot and companions Rikki and Josh on what was initially a rain-soaked walk from Earith to Stretham. Before heading out, each person had a cooked breakfast and a packed lunch to keep them going along the way.
Whilst the team had to reroute due to flooding along part of the Via Beata, the weather didn’t dampen their spirits, with Companion Rikki saying: “It was really lovely to join the team who are such a great bunch of people doing an amazing thing! It was a pleasure to be part of their pilgrimage, walking with them for 10 miles was a great privilege.
“Emmaus Norfolk was my first Emmaus two and a half years ago. I had problems with drink and drugs, so I reached out to Norfolk and they took me in. That was the start of my story and here I am now with them again. They are amazing.”
Donna added: “We felt that as an act of solidarity it was important to support the fantastic work that Cecile and the team are doing. We’re really excited by the prospect of their unique new B&B and they’ve done incredibly well to get to this point with such horrendous weather in recent days.
“We want to be with them today, spend time with them. We want to hear about their journey and celebrate what they’ve achieved.”
Find out more about the #WalkOfKindness and donate towards the appeal on Emmaus Norfolk & Waveney’s website.
Battling through the elements together – the Walk of Kindness team pictured with their Emmaus Cambridge supporters.
You can listen to Donna talking about the walk on Cambridge 105 Radio’s Glenn Jones show, aired on Sunday 06 June 2024, via this catch-up link.