It may not have turned the tide on world poverty, but the battle has become a little easier in areas being assisted by the Archbishop of Sydney’s Anglican Aid, after a whirlwind tour of New South Wales beaches.

Anglican Aid CEO David Mansfield and a group of board and body surfers, set out on the South Coast and at the edge of the Sydney diocese on February the 7th.

Their challenge was to surf and swim the 100 beaches from Bawley Point, near Ulladulla, to Barrenjoey on the northern beaches of Sydney.

As Mr Mansfield swam and preached his way through the beaches and churches of the area, groups of Christians met for prayer on the beaches before each outing and the money flowed, ranging from pledges of 10 cents a beach ($10) t0 $100 a beach ($10,000).

The youngest surfer was 17 year old Port Macquarie student Ben Collins who joined the team of older surfers, as David Mansfield said “making us feel good about ourselves as we hit the water each morning.” The allusions to water and surfing came as fast as the tide on each beach.

“Just as Jesus encourages us we want to break the waves of poverty around the world and help those who are much needier than us” Mr Mansfield said. “With over 20,000 children under the age of five dying every day from preventable causes, such as hunger, the 100 Beaches Challenge is a race against time as we try to break the waves of poverty engulfing communities throughout the world” he told the Diocesan newspaper Southern Cross.

Sponsors could choose from a range of projects from helping to educate orphans in Bali, rescue girls from prostitution in South Africa, provide dental health care in the Congo, train semi-literate pastors in South Sudan, support children with disabilities in Tanzania, and to give sight to people in India.

But the key project was the African Gambella WASH scheme in Ethiopia, where 30,000 mothers are being trained in better practices of water and sanitation hygiene. This protects their children from deadly water borne infection and disease. 

“The children of Gambella are dying in large numbers but our 100 Beaches Challenge will go a long way in saving lives” said Mr Mansfield. Now the challenge is over, Mr Mansfield is reflective about what such ‘extreme events’ can achieve. “The number of people who came out to meet us at each beach was heartening, a highlight being the evening meeting at Dapto Anglican where 85 men joined us” he said. “I can speak to and pray with more people in two weeks than I ever would in months at the office.”

Even though the challenge is over, you can still support the Anglican Aid target projects, here.

The next target for Anglican Aid is its fundraising drive for half a million dollars to meet its current commitments in training the next generation of leaders in Africa.

The next ‘extreme challenge’? “Lawn bowls” says Mr Mansfield mischievously. “But seriously, there’s been a great suggestion for a Two Rivers Canoe challenge down the Parramatta and Georges Rivers”.

Photo: David Mansfield at an Illawarra beach, half way through the 100 beaches challenge