Friends help widow’s dream come true
Challenges at Outward Bound next step in young mother’s life journey
Laura Barr’s husband Robert died in a freak nail gun accident in 2014 when their daughter was just four months old. Friends have now rallied to raise funds to send Laura to Outward Bound.
Life was never the same for Laura Barr after she lost her beloved husband in a freak work accident. Waipukurau builder Robert Barr left for work at the usual time on July 2, 2014, leaving Laura and their then 16-weekold daughter at home.
The 31-year-old died shortly after a freak accident on a rural property in Central Hawke’s Bay, when a nail gun fired into his chest as he was climbing down a ladder.
The accident turned Laura’s life upside down, as she was now alone — a 23-year-old widow with a tiny baby at her side — at least that’s what she thought.
Four years on, her husband’s death hasn’t stood in the way of her ambition to get to Outward Bound — a nonprofit organisation helping people reach their full potential through challenges outdoors.
Laura needs $5000 to get there and friends and family are asking members of the public to come forward to help her achieve that dream.
A fundraising event (a dinner and auction) is being held at the Havelock North Community Centre at 6.30pm tomorrow.
Tickets cost $55 and those attending are encouraged to donate a luxury item for a raffle.
Owner of fundraising works Bronwyn Harman says one of the All Blacks has even come on board to support Laura’s ambition.
“Brodie Retallick (who knows Laura) has managed to get an All Blacks shirt signed by the team plus we have a unique auction item for a group of kids to be picked up by a fire engine, taken to the Havelock North Fire Station and being allowed to play with the hoses etc (all supervised by real firefighters, of course) — plus many other things.”
Now 27, and four years on from her husband’s death, Laura says she’s still taking things “one step at a time”.
“It’s okay to have those days where you just don’t want to get out of bed, but remember that you’re still here and whoever you’ve lost, they wouldn’t want you to go downhill, they would want you to keep going for them.”
She said Outward Bound had always been one of her strong ambitions and she felt it would be a huge confident boost for both herself and fouryear-old daughter Asha Rose.
“I always thought about doing it in high school — but it never really came to anything.
“I think it would be good to prove to myself that I can do something that is going to be quite challenging both emotionally and physically.
‘‘I feel quite ready to prove to myself that I can do this to show Asha that whatever challenges do come, you can get through it.”
Laura said although she was looking forward to the challenge, it was going to be an emotional challenge being away from her daughter.
“There’s no phones or internet, so for me that’s going to be a huge challenge because
I feel quite ready to prove to myself that I can do this to show Asha that whatever challenges do come, you can get through it. Laura Barr
we’re so close.
“We both rely on each other and bounce off each other, so to be away from her is going to be really hard.”
Laura says she feels incredibly lucky to have such supportive friends and family, as she hadn’t considered a fundraising event to get herself to Outward Bound.
“This kind of event helps bring people together as well and I’m just lucky for the love and support I do have.
“After all this support I want to prove that I can do something like Outward Bound, not only for myself, but for those who are rallying to help me get there.” i