„Be the change you want to see in the world.“ (Mahatma Ghandi)
This was also my motivation in 2009 to run the BANK OF CHICAGO MARATHON October 11th as charity run for IN CHILDREN’S EYES to support projects for prevention of sexual exploitation for children and sexual violence/abuse against children and therapies for victims of sexual abuse.
Beside all the public violent acts there are many unseen cases, secret and closemouthed sexual violence/abuse against children. The perpetrators are within the family, relatives and friends in 75% of all cases. It is not the „unknown evil man“, „unknown evil woman“, but it can be their own father, mother, uncle, grandfather, aunt, teacher, trainer …
Sexual violence/abuse is a vicious crime und happens in all social classes. It doesn’t make any difference if you are poor or rich, doctor, professor, engineer or controller, the abusers are outwards “normal people”. Sexual violence/abuse also can be found within groups of peers.
After I passed over the starting-line on October 11th in Chicago at 07.31am I remembered all the good wishes I got for this run from family and friends. But above all I remembered the children I am running for those hours: motivation enough to finish – although cramps made it not easy at all – with the result of 03:25:26 (place 3.280 out of 33.687 finishers).
One goal has been reached. What about the other one, I was so excited to know as the following projects have been supported:
- WILDWASSER ESSLINGEN E.V.
(Specialist counselling for sexual exploitation, www.wildwasser-esslingen.de) - TAUWETTER
(Specialist counselling for men, who has been sexual abused as a child., www.tauwetter.de), - THEATER PÄDAGOGISCHE WERKSTATT
(Theatre Educational Workshop, development and realization of preventive education about sexual exploitation, www.tpw-osnabrueck.de) in cooperation with „ZARTBITTER E.V.“ (preventive education “Click it!”, www.zartbitter.de)