http://www.walkinnoshoes.com "WALK IN NO SHOES" BENEFITING THE SUDAN RELIEF FUND TAKING PLACE AT WOODLEY PARK/LAKE BALBOA SUNDAY, APRIL 7, 2013 10K Walk, 5K Walk and 1K "Walk in No Shoes" to Raise Awareness, Funds and Support For War-Ravaged South Sudanese Genocide Victims WHAT: "Walk in No Shoes" is a 10K walk, 5K walk and 1K "walk in no shoes" event benefiting the Sudan Relief Fund. The event will enable Los Angelenos who have been horrified by the tragic news stories about genocide in South Sudan -- but perhaps have felt powerless to help such seemingly insurmountable circumstances on the other side of the world -- to take meaningful action to support the South Sudanese people who have endured more than 20 years of horrendous religious persecution, enslavement, rape, torture, starvation and senseless murder at the hands of their own government. The Sudan Relief Fund was created in 1998 by Bishop Macram Max Gassis of the El Obeid Diocese, which includes the Nuba Mountains and Abyei in South Sudan, to raise awareness, generate funds and support relief efforts that provide food, safe drinking water, clothing, shelter, medical attention, education and hope to the people of the region regardless of nationality, religion, ethnicity or tribal affiliation. WHEN: Sunday, April 7, 2013 8:00 a.m. WHERE: Woodley Park/Lake Balboa (Anthony C. Beilenson Park -- formerly Balboa Park) 6350 Woodley Avenue, Van Nuys, CA 91406 Parking lot entrance on the west side of Woodley Avenue COST: Entry fees will range from $25 - $75, with each participant asked to try bring in $250 in donations WHO: • Bishop Macram Max Gassis has worked tirelessly for decades to protect the rights of all people to live in peace and security. As a result of his courage and dedication, Bishop Gassis was among the candidates proposed to receive the 2012 Nobel Peace Prize. Bishop Gassis has played a unique role as the only Sudanese Bishop who was also a native Arabic speaker (the language of the North Sudanese government). This gave him unique insight into the dangers posed by the Sudanese government to its own people. From Kenya, the passionate human rights activist has organized relief for residents of southern Sudan (including parts of what is now the new nation of South Sudan) and the Nuba Mountains terrorized by war -- areas that other relief agencies were unable to reach due to an embargo imposed by the Sudanese government. He secretly flew urgently needed food, medical supplies and aid workers to the region always under threat of attack from government forces. The Bishop himself has been attacked on pastoral and relief visits to the area. • Event spokesperson is Gabriel Meyer, former Executive Director of the Sudan Relief Fund and an award-winning journalist, novelist and poet whose landmark work War and Faith in Sudan presents a stirring account of the tragic civil war in Sudan as endured by the Nuba people who live in the mountains of central Sudan. Meyer first visited the country in 1998 to interview Bishop Gassis and travel with him through the Nuba Mountains. Meyer revisited Sudan the next three years to write and co-produce a documentary film, The Hidden Gift: War and Faith in Sudan, on Bishop Gassis' work among the Nuba and other forgotten peoples of the country. The documentary has been shown around the world; the film footage is now archived at the Holocaust Museum in Washington, D.C. and the Museum of Tolerance in Los Angeles. ### About the Sudan Relief Fund Having personally witnessed more than 20 years of horrendous religious persecution, enslavement, rape, torture, starvation and murder of the South Sudanese people at the hands of their own government, Bishop Macram Max Gassis of the El Obeid Diocese, which includes the Nuba Mountains and Abyei in South Sudan, established the Sudan Relief Fund for the purpose of bringing food, safe drinking water, clothing, shelter, medical attention and hope to the people of South Sudan. Since its inception in 1998, the 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organization has made significant progress under the most difficult circumstances imaginable -- but much work remains to be done. More information: http://www.hopeforsudan.com walk in Los Angeles http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5yogT3AbDw

• published: 24 Jan 2013
• views: 39357