While most people will wear a white ribbon to show their support for White Ribbon Day, one determined woman is going to extreme lengths to raise awareness and help put an end to violence against women.
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Kirrily Dear is currently in training to complete a gruelling 860km, 12-day ultramarathon through regional NSW, which will end in Forbes on White Ribbon Day, November 25.
Starting in Walgett on November 14, the White Ribbon Ultramarathon will take Kirrily on a journey through some of the communities most affected by domestic violence in NSW – all in the hope of raising funds and awareness to put a stop to violence against women.
From Walgett, Kirrily will head to Burren Junction, Wee Waa, Boggabri, Manilla, Tamworth, Spring Ridge, Coolah, Mendooran, Dubbo, Yeoval, Parkes and finally finish in Forbes.
The 860km route was deliberately chosen as it takes in three Local Government Authorities that are among the most affected by domestic violence in NSW – Walgett, which is number two on the list, Dubbo is number eight and Forbes, which is ranked the sixth worst LGA for domestic violence.
Significantly, Kirrily chose Forbes as the end point of her journey, not just because it was on the top 10 list but because she was inspired by the work being done here to combat domestic violence.
“As I was doing research around what initiatives were underway Forbes kept popping up as a showcase,” she said.
“Everyone was talking about Forbes and the positive work happening there, in particular with the High School and the Love Bites program, so that’s how I picked Forbes as our finish line.
“It’s a fantastic opportunity to show that the town has recognised it has a problem and is working so constructively to fix it.”
Kirrily started running when she was 36 and fell in love with it, eventually joining a running club and 14 months later completed her first 100km race.
She is passionate about doing something to stop domestic violence and so decided to run for the cause.
“Training for ultramarathons gives you a lot of time to think,” she said.
“While out training one day, I came to the realisation of how I could do more, how I could make a difference. And so the White Ribbon Ultramarathon was born.”
Kirrily said the White Ribbon Ultramarathon aims to show that by working together, men and women can thrive and overcome a seemingly insurmountable challenge.
“It’s a horrific statistic that on average one Australian woman is killed each week by a current or former intimate partner and one in three Australian women will experience violence in their lifetime,” Kirrily said.
“I became increasingly frustrated with the public reaction to each new tragic case of violence against women…no one was taking personal responsibility and saying ‘I must do more’.”
Kirrily hopes to make it to Forbes in time for the White Ribbon March at 10.30am but said by that stage she’ll have run a total of 820km.
“Hopefully I get there…I’ll be doing a five hour marathon on the last day with already 820km in my legs,” she said.
She will be running 42km from Parkes to Forbes and says she chose the back route, Back Yamma Road, because it is a marathon distance.
“My usual marathon time is 3 hours 40 minutes but normally when you run a marathon your legs are fresh,” she said.
A couple of students from Forbes High School will join Kirrily on the last few kilometres of her run to Forbes, where she will join in on White Ribbon celebrations and will be treated to a massage in Victoria Park during the ceremony.
To show your support for Kirrily, make a donation to White Ribbon through her Facebook page, which can be viewed without having a Facebook account, www.facebook.com/whiteribbonrun or https://give.everydayhero.com/au/kirrilyd.