August 16th 2024.
Jonny Beardmore is a man on a mission, but not just any mission. He's doing something extraordinary in honor of his late father, Eric. Losing a loved one is never easy, and the weight of grief can be overwhelming. But Jonny has found strength through selflessness, by bringing a little light to strangers' lives.
Ever since his dad passed away from motor neurone disease, Jonny has made it his goal to raise money for MND research. But he's doing it in a unique way - by reconnecting an increasingly divided world, one letter at a time. This all started with a tradition that sailors began in 1793. The tradition involved leaving a postcard in a box on Ecuador's Galapagos Islands, hoping that a passing ship would pick it up and deliver it to a loved one. However, there was never a guarantee that the letter would make it home.
Jonny has taken up this tradition and is hand-delivering 50 postcards from the Galapagos Islands to recipients all around the world. So far, his journey has taken him to at least 14 countries, covering over 50,000km. And he's not stopping there - he plans to continue until March 1, 2025. But for Jonny, the most meaningful part of his journey has been getting to know the people he delivers messages to.
"They're opening up to me and telling me the most amazing stories of their lives once they find out what I'm doing," Jonny shares. It's moments like these that make his journey even more meaningful.
One of the postcards Jonny delivered was addressed to a man named Steve. The note was written by Steve's ex-girlfriend, Denise, who had expressed her undying love for him. Although Jonny found Steve living in Belize, they had already broken up by the time the letter reached them. But this didn't stop Jonny from joining the pair for lunch, and they are now friends. As Jonny puts it, "Not quite the happy ending we were rooting for, but the letter delivery has got them back talking, which is a win in my books."
Sometimes, Jonny also receives help from strangers in completing his mission. When a postcard was meant for a young boy in Nashville, but his family wasn't home to receive it, Jonny's journey almost came to a sad end. However, with the help of his neighbors, Kurt and Amanda, they were able to track down the boy's family and deliver the letter.
Since the start of his journey, Jonny has traveled to numerous countries, including South America, Central America, Antarctica, and North America. But this isn't just a personal adventure - it's also in memory of his father. Jonny has delivered 50 letters so far and is currently in Ireland, where he has appeared on the country's most popular radio show.
Speaking about his mission, Jonny explained, "I want to highlight the loss of mobility and freedom of movement that my father and other MND sufferers experience - a reminder that we should never take these abilities for granted."
MND, or motor neurone disease, is a condition where cells in the brain and nerves, called motor neurones, gradually stop working. Its symptoms include muscle weakness, twitches, slurred speech, and difficulty swallowing. And as Jonny travels to raise awareness and funds for MND research, he's also documenting his journey on a trackable map and his social media accounts.
Although Jonny's journey won't end until March 1, 2025, he has already raised over $10,000NZ out of his $100,000 goal. And he has received help from people all around the globe, making his journey even more meaningful. While using his frequent flyer miles to lessen the financial burden, Jonny has encountered countless connections that will stay with him forever. And some of them are incredibly random, like the time he delivered two separate letters in Iceland that turned out to be linked in the most amazing way. The original sender had sent multiple letters, and Jonny delivered one to a family who had already received another random letter from the Galapagos - from the same person!
Jonny's journey is not just about delivering postcards and letters. It's about connecting people from all around the world and making a difference in honor of his father. And with every letter delivered, he is spreading a little bit of light in a sometimes divided world.
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