Durban - DRISTI Moodley refused to let the Covid-19 pandemic stop her plans to swim the aQuelle Midmar Mile to raise money for the Choc Childhood Cancer Foundation of South Africa.
Dristi, 13, of Glenwood, a Grade 8 pupil at St Henry’s Marist College, instead swam the mile in the pool at her school and raised R3 000 for the organisation.
The teenager belongs to a non-profit organisation called The Cows. It was started in 2008 by eight cyclists who aimed to raise funds for the foundation.
The Midmar Mile was scheduled for the weekend of March 6 and 7 and it was supposed to continue this weekend but it was cancelled.
“I have lost family to cancer and the Mile was an opportunity for me to assist children with the disease. When I heard I could not swim the Mile in the dam, I felt annoyed because I wanted to challenge myself with an open-water swim, but I understood it could not be done due to the pandemic and we needed to be safe.”
Dristi said she asked her swimming coach, Tatum Ambrose, from Trident Swimming Academy, if she could swim the Mile at her school’s pool.
"My coach agreed and we began training. We started in February. From Monday to Friday, I trained for an hour a day. It was challenging but knowing that the money that would be raised for a good cause kept me motivated.”
Last Monday, Dristi, an endurance swimmer who previously participated in the Midmar Mile, swam the mile.
“I swam it in 37 minutes and 13 seconds, which I am proud of. I swam 60 lengths of the school pool to log 1 600m. I was able to raise R3 000.”
The donations were made through the givegain website, a platform that allows people to raise funds for charity.
She attributed her success to the support of her parents, Sagren, 49, and Magenthri, 45, and her sibling, Deyuri, 17.
"My family has always encouraged me to do my best. With their support and that of my friends, I raised the money for CHOC to let them continue the amazing work they are doing by helping children with cancer."
Dristi said she challenged every child in her grade to donate or swim part of the Midmar Mile distance or the full distance in support of children with cancer. She has also participated in the Cancer Shavathon where, on two occasions, she shaved her hair off.
Magenthri said Dristi’s happy place was in the water.
“We are extremely proud of Dristi. As parents, it is always heart-warming to see our girls doing the things they love, to the best of their abilities and doing it with kindness and concern for others.”
Iris Varty, the head of The Cows in KZN, said the passion and determination of the schoolchildren were remarkable.
“They are absolutely committed to completing their swim, even if it is in their swimming pools at school or at home, like Dristi did, to make sure that CHOC doesn't suffer the setback of not getting the money that is raised by The Cows at the event every year.”
Angie Govender, the KZN manager for CHOC, said: “At such a young age Dristi’s fundraising has created awareness of CHOC and the excellent work that we do for children with cancer. Despite the Midmar 1 mile being cancelled, we were amazed to see her drive. It reminds us of the journey every one of our beneficiaries experience daily.”
Stephen Leech, the college principal, said the school was proud of Dristi.
“One of the key values at St Henry’s is to give of your time and talents for others and Dristi’s achievement is a wonderful example of this.”
If you would like to support Dristi to raise additional funds for the foundation, visit: www.givengain.com/ap/dristi-moodley-raising-funds-for-the-cows-34866/
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