Teen gets on his bike to raise cash for Bulgarian dogs
GOOLE SCHOOLBOY AIMS TO RAISE £5,000
A 15-year-old schoolboy from Goole is cycling a distance equivalent to the whole of the Bulgarian coastline to raise money for a cause close to his family’s heart.
Matt Fielding is biking 18 miles a day, whatever the weather, to reach his target of 252 miles and £1,500 in donations within two weeks, to help pay for a new puppy play park and kennel block at the Rescue Faces Of Hope Sanctuary in the Balkan country.
He has already topped the £1,000 mark on his Gofundme page, and his eventual goal is to raise £5,000 to support the scheme.
Not only will the facility be used to rehabilitate and socialise puppies and dogs who have not had the best start in life, it will also educate local communities, where treatment of dogs is thought to be poor, about animal welfare and the joy that dogs can bring to people’s lives.
Rescue Faces Of Hope Sanctuary will also offer the chance for UK veterans and retired police officers to interact with the animals as part of a retreat programme to aid their wellbeing or simply to provide a distraction from their daily lives.
Matt’s mum Sarah said she was very proud of her son’s efforts towards the sanctuary that she and her partner Tom, a former soldier, are developing in Bulgaria.
“Tom’s father lives in Bulgaria and when we have visited we have seen some atrocious situations with dogs there,” said Sarah, who has five rescued dogs at home.
“You see dogs roaming around and scrapping for food, they do get put in plastic bags and dumped, they get shot and poisoned.
“We’ve been to some rescue centres there, some good, some not so good, and Tom decided he wanted to raise awareness and to get these dogs rehomed.”
Tom, who is a professional animal portrait photographer, works alongside the shelters in Bulgaria to try to find new, loving owners for rescued dogs.
He also conducts pet portrait sessions to help fund the work of the Rescue Faces Of Hope.
“We thought, why don’t we build a sanctuary ourselves in Bulgaria, and so far we are probably about a quarter of the way there,” said Sarah. “The main pod is built where we will stay when we go out there; there will be eight more pods where the veterans will stay.
“It’s entirely self-funded and Matt decided he wanted to help so is raising the money for the puppy play park and kennel block.
“Matt sees on a daily basis the joy and happiness dogs can bring to our lives – one of our dogs, Jake, was rescued from Bulgaria, he had been hit by a car and left for dead.
“Matt has also witnessed first-hand the abuse and suffering many dogs face all over Bulgaria and the thought of being able to help countless dogs and people in need has inspired him to take up this challenge.
“We think it’s amazing seeing him out there every day on his bike, after he has been at school all day, we are really, really proud of him.”