Charterhouse preschool teacher, Elvina Rapatsa, is one of 12 people who will be taking part in the seven-day 1 575km Mad2Run initiative from 12–19 April.
Elvina was born and raised in Randpark Ridge, and decided to take on the Mad2Run challenge after she was inspired by reading about it. “I read about it and was inspired to increase awareness about how important education is,” Elvina said. “I have seen videos about the Mad2Run leadership programme and how learners’ lives have been impacted positively through education and this organisation.”
For those who don’t know what Mad2Run is, according to the organisation’s website, “Mad2Run is a group of ordinary South Africans using our feet for a great feat! This is a unique annual fundraising event, in which a group of selfless individuals epically run from Johannesburg to Cape Town (1 575km in total) in just 7 days! It’s a 24-hour relay-style running adventure, all in support of [the] MAD Leadership Foundation.”
In essence, then, the participants are mad, but most likely mad in the same sense that Elvina is about making a difference. “I want to be ‘that’ difference for education,” she said. When asked what her driving force is, she highlighted the “… lives that will be changed through accessible tertiary education”.
When it comes to what she’s looking forward to most, Elvina pointed out that she will be travelling through different provinces and getting to visit places she has never had the chance to visit before.
