Twestival is a global movement, uniting social media supporters from around the world in celebration of social media, all the while each supporting important local causes in various communities. Since launching in 2009, over 200 cities have participated in the event, raising nearly 1.2million to help causes in support of such things as improved education, living conditions and clean water access around the world.
This year’s Sydney event supported RedKite, an extremely worthwhile charity providing support to children, young people and families experiencing cancer. With 100% of Twestival funds from ticket sales and donations going to charity, the Sydney event gave us the chance to show our support for RedKite’s services, as well as providing a guilt-free way for us to enjoy a mid week drink in our favourite Surry Hills local!
The entire event was broadcast live via twitter and guests were even given the chance to jump in front of a webcam and broadcast a message to the world – very impressive! In addition, a raffle and auction took place throughout the night to raise money for RedKite, with prizes including a Nokia smartphone, a stunning Aquabumps photo and tickets to Taronga Zoo tickets. Our very own Fleur even managed to win a shiny new Sony Ericsson Xperia X8 mobile phone at the silent auction (a definite improvement on her previous Nokia, which had definitely seen better days)!
The highlight of our night was listening to an inspirational speech by cancer survivor, Jeremy Medlock. Jeremy was just 12 years old when he was diagnosed with Astrocytoma, a form of cancer which left him with permanent vision impairment and physical disabilities. Now, only 20 years of age, Jeremy stood in front of the 300 guests recounting his battle with cancer. Speaking with great aplomb and courage, Jeremy thanked RedKite for making his life, and that of his parents, a little easier during his tough battle, and encouraged attendees to dig deep into their pockets to help support the cause.
Receiving no government funding, RedKite’s services are all made possible by support from the community, from which they can offer young cancer sufferers, and their families, among many things, emotional, financial and educational support. While Jeremy was suffering from cancer, RedKite paid for Jeremy’s at-home tuition, enabling him to slot back into the same year at school (despite missing a full year), as well as providing him with music therapy to help him through his chemotherapy.
To sum it up, Sydney Twestival 2011 was a huge success, raising $16, 710 for RedKite (thrashing it’s goal of $4,050) providing a great opportunity for people to network and gossip with fellow social media enthusiasts – if you missed it, I would definitely recommend checking it out in 2012!
If you would like to donate to RedKite, please follow this link: http://www.everydayhero.com.au/sydney_twestival
RedKite – http://www.redkite.org.au/
