On the evening of Wednesday June 25th film goers from Cochrane and Calgary area came to the Cochrane Movie House. Had they come for the latest blockbuster; another Pixar or Marvel outing? Not this time. They came to see a documentary that was released in 2019 and shown around the world: "The Secret Marathon." However, this film had never been shown in Cochrane, and it was only through serendipity it happened.
The Cochrane Cares Walking and Running Club was founded by Kari Rose. This women-led running community was started in 2020 to provide a safe, supportive, and empowering space for women to come together through movement. One Saturday morning in early April, after talking to the group, Kari and another runner Gayle asked if I would like to hold a fund raiser using The Secret Marathon film and show it at the Cochrane Movie House.
This is what I had been waiting for all these years and I knew the charity I wanted to support. Classrooms Without Walls (CWW) was established in 2022 by David Falconer. David lives in Cochrane, is a Rotarian and is committed to improve the lives of children in Myanmar, Ukraine and Afghanistan through on-line education. I’ve been working with this charity for two years as a Volunteer Teacher and Board member. One project they have been working on is providing support for Afghan women who want to get their General Education Diploma’s (GED’s). The cost for each women to take the four exams is $1,000.
In early May, Kari, Gayle and I had our first meeting. We agreed that we would try and raise $5,000 and help five Afghan women earn their GEDs and access higher education-- an opportunity that is currently under severe threat. With this in place it was all systems go: booking the theatre, getting sponsors, putting up posters around town, sending out emails to family and friends, sharing on social media, selling tickets, and making up raffle baskets.
On June 19th, Fiona, Manager of the Movie House told us that the first cinema was sold out so we added another. The big day arrived and the doors opened at 5:30 p.m., and people started to arrive and fill the theatres. The film started at 6:30 p.m. and after we had a Q & A session. Lina and Roma from CWW were collecting donations and by the end of the night we had raised $7,000.
It takes a community and a vision to achieve a goal. Huge thanks to everyone involved. We are hoping to hit the $10,000 mark so if you would like to donate please go to www.classroomswithoutwalls.ca and hit the “Donate” button. Stronger together.
