Claudia kicking goals

Claudia is one of our fantastic supporters joining our Hamlin Ethiopian Adventure in November this year. Each year, the Catherine Hamlin Fistula Foundation takes a small group of passionate supporters over to Ethiopia to witness first-hand how their donations are changing lives.

Trip participants get an insider’s tour of Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia. They visit the famous Addis Ababa Fistula Hospital, the Hamlin College of Midwives, a Hamlin regional hopsital and a rural midwifery clinic – meeting patients and Hamlin staff. There are also plenty of sightseeing opportunities along the way, including visiting the incredible 12th century rock churches of Lalibela, taking a boat ride on Lake Tana and exploring local markets. On their last weekend they will participate in the Great Ethiopian Run, alongside 45,000 locals in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa.

For supporters to be a part of the trip, they make a commitment to raise $10,000 for Hamlin Fistula Ethiopia – an incredible feat.

Meet Claudia

Claudia is 50 years old, married with two kids and is passionate about the work of Dr Catherine Hamlin. Working in health services for many years has given her a unique insight into what it means to help people.

“I am a Registered Nurse and Midwife and spent 30 plus years working in maternal and women’s health, most recently in fertility medicine.

Six years ago my life was turned upside down with the diagnosis of an illness which ultimately lead to the passing of my Father in early 2012. This major life change made me take a serious look at who I was, so at 100kg I began a major journey of physical, mental and spiritual transformation.

Ten months later I was 30kg lighter and so the journey continued. My love for health and fitness turned into my work. I left nursing in 2016 and have been coaching full-time at Clean Shred in Castle Hill where the ethos is to impact as many people as possible. This gave me an opportunity to fulfil a lifelong dream of impacting a community abroad.”

The hospital by the river 

Claudia is just one of our many supporters impacted by Catherine Hamlin’s book the book Hospital by the River. 

“I read the book Hospital by the River as a young midwife and it never left me and I continued to follow the work of Catherine Hamlin.

Participating in both the fundraising efforts and going on 2017 Hamlin Ethiopian Adventure will support Dr Hamlin’s vision in ridding fistulas in Ethiopian women. My wish is to leave the world a little better than it was before I existed with my contributions.”

A fundraising feat

By fundraising in a variety of different ways, Claudia has been able to encourage her community to get involved and make an impact in a global way. The gym community at Clean Shred Castle Hill has supported her through selling t-shirts, assisting with a Gloria Jeans coffee night and finally by hosting a Trivia night which included food, fun and physical challenges – the perfect combination for a trivia night held inside a gym!

Claudia embarked on her fundraising journey in February this year. After four months of fundraising she has hit her target and raised over $10,500! An amazing achievement. 

Her commitment to this challenge has been incredible and we are so pleased to have her joining us this year on the trip of a lifetime.

Find out more about our bi-annual Hamlin Ethiopian Adventures here or call our office and speak to Maddy on 02 9440 7001.