By Jessica Anstice
Five-year-old Josh, with the help of his mum Lyndall Fokkens organised a ‘Bike-A-Thon’ on Tuesday 22 January to raise money for Aussie farmers battling the drought.
Josh had his sister and six friends ride around the bike track on Avebury Drive in Berwick.
He had a couple of other friends come to cheer him on.
Josh rode 101 laps of the track and his little band of friends rode a further 500 or so between them.
Prior to his Bike-A-Thon, when people asked Josh how many laps he thought he would ride in 90 minutes, he would reply “thousands” or “infinity”.
“Josh is quite confident in his bike-riding abilities,” Ms Fokkens said.
“My husband and I were more realistic about what he could achieve in the designated time span, and we were pretty amazed when he exceeded our expectations by riding 101 laps.
“We think that having his friends with him helped him to push that little bit harder.”
Josh’s said that the Bike-A-Thon went well, he enjoyed riding with his friends and he was very tired at the end.
With 15 minutes to go, Josh had 80 laps on the board, so he rode with fierce determination to try and crack the 100 lap mark.
After he finished his Bike-A-Thon, Josh asked if he could do a ride for the farmers every January.
“My husband and I have been surprised and gratified by the support shown by the community for Josh’s Bike-A-Thon,” Ms Fokkens said.
Berwick Star News published a story prior to Josh’s event.
“The story definitely helped to generate some interest and excitement,” she said.
“A lady called Zoe, who is a friend of Josh’s great-grandfather, read the story in paper. She recognised the family name and so came to the bike track to say hello and donate some money.
“Another gentleman was out walking while the Bike-A-Thon was taking place, and he called past to see if we were ‘the people from the paper’ and added his own donation too. People have been so encouraging of Josh.”
So far $1067 has been donated to the Drought Angels in honour of Josh’s cycling, but this tally will grow in the coming days as there are a few more donations in the pipeline from Josh’s family and friends.
“Josh had a goal to raise $500 for the farmers, so he’s pretty thrilled that he’s managed to double that,” Ms Fokkens said.
“I think that the fundraising from the Bike-A-Thon worked well because people are eager to support a five-year-old kid who’s trying to make a small difference in the world.
“More importantly, I think that people have been very generous because they know that the Drought Angels are doing excellent work for those farmers who are struggling to feed sheep and cattle and keep their crops alive.”
Mr and Ms Fokkens are delighted by Josh’s achievements.
“We try to encourage both our children to be like Jesus and care for people who are in need, so we were thrilled when Josh first came up with this idea to ride for the farmers. He really has such a kind heart,” she said.
“Josh starts in Prep at Berwick Primary School on Thursday next week, but he is eager to go back to visit his teachers at Berwick Kindergarden (who first taught him about the drought) so that he can tell them about the money he has raised for the farmers.”
