Every minute of every day, a child is admitted to hospital in Australia.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
That fact is what motivated Torron Bartlett, Archie Forwood and Taylor Serafin to complete the Starlight Super Swim in 2020.
"It's important to me because it gives hope to sick children and their families," 12-year-old Torron Bartlett said.
"I know this through the experience of my uncle, who spent a lot of time in hospital as a child."
The boys will be swimming a combined 255 kilometres in 30 days, a challenging feat for an admirable cause.
Their initial target was $3,000, but five days before beginning the challenge, their online sponsor pages have already accumulated a total of $3,835.
"I want to raise money for sick children and make their lives better," Taylor said.
"I want to make them happy by helping raise money for the kids in hospital," Archie added.
The boys will begin their swim challenge on Australia Day, with a deadline set on February 24 for them to reach their targets.
But with Torron, Taylor and Archie all keen swimmers, proud mum Naomi Bartlett suspects that targets will be reached ahead of schedule.
"He loves what he is doing for the kids," Ms Bartlett explained.
"He actually doesn't see it as punishment, he absolutely thrives on improving himself and doing well."
This will be the second Starlight Foundation Super Swim, after the inaugural challenge was held in 2019 and raised $400,000 across Australia.
"The aim of the Starlight Foundation is to brighten the lives of seriously ill children," Torron explained.
"I'm really excited to be doing the Super Swim this year."
READ MORE
***
While you're with us, did you know that you can now receive updates straight to your inbox every Monday at 6am from The Area News? To make sure you're up to date with all the Griffith and MIA news you can sign up here.
