On Monday 1 October, Ryan Fowler commenced a run from Melbourne to Sydney with the support of his brother Chad. He set off from Very Special Kids, an organisation in the suburbs of Melbourne that cares for children with life-threatening conditions. 

On Friday 26 October, Ryan and Chad ran past the gates of Newington College after 1000km on the road and continued on to Scots College, Bellevue Hill. Ryan is a teacher at Scots who lost his 18-month-old boy Rio to a rare vascular issue in January of this year. Rio was My godson.

In the eight months after Rio’s passing, Ryan and his wife Karen started Rio’s Legacy in Rio’s name and set about planning this run as a fundraiser for families who need support for their sick children. It was wonderful to see approximately 40 Newington boys get out and support Ryan as he ran the final leg of his journey home, to Scots College.

Their efforts over the 26 days raised over $50,000. Ryan was welcomed home to Scots in front of the entire school with an escort of pipes and drums. Even as a rival school, one could not help but marvel at the community spirit shown by Scots on that day. Our Newington boys were only a small, but no less important part of the journey.

Cameron Black
Strength and Conditioning Manager