Jess, welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for your time today.

Jess, welcome back to Talking Vision. Thank you very much for your time today.

Thanks, Sam. It's always good to chat.

Thanks, Sam. It's always good to chat.

Now, just to start off with, we're here to chat about 100 K your way. Of course. Now, people may have heard of this over the years, but for people new to the idea out there, what is 100 K your way?

Now, just to start off with, we're here to chat about 100 K your way. Of course. Now, people may have heard of this over the years, but for people new to the idea out there, what is 100 K your way?

Well, this April we're encouraging people to run, walk, swim, roll whatever form you feel like doing 100km your way, and it gives us the opportunity to raise some funds whilst having fun moving around at the same time for Vision Australia. And all funds raised will be going to helping people who are blind or have low vision live the life they choose. So I'm really excited to be on board as an ambassador this year and seeing how I can push out that 100 K in April.

Well, this April we're encouraging people to run, walk, swim, roll whatever form you feel like doing 100km your way, and it gives us the opportunity to raise some funds whilst having fun moving around at the same time for Vision Australia. And all funds raised will be going to helping people who are blind or have low vision live the life they choose. So I'm really excited to be on board as an ambassador this year and seeing how I can push out that 100 K in April.

Oh, perfect. And Jess, how did you become an ambassador? How did that all sort of come about? Was there the one sort of event or one day where you thought, you know what, I want to get behind this cause this is, you know, such an amazing organization that's been so important to me and both of us. You know, we've really benefited over the years. But how did that come about?

Oh, perfect. And Jess, how did you become an ambassador? How did that all sort of come about? Was there the one sort of event or one day where you thought, you know what, I want to get behind this cause this is, you know, such an amazing organization that's been so important to me and both of us. You know, we've really benefited over the years. But how did that come about?

Well, really, my relationship with Vision Australia started over 20 years ago when I was diagnosed as legally blind. And the first person that my ophthalmologist doctor, Lisa Reddington, put me in touch with was Vision Australia. And they really enabled me to understand my low vision, what it meant, how I could at the time I was in year 12. So they sent a occupational therapist out to the school to help educate the teachers on the things I could and couldn't see. And it really opened my eyes, and no pun intended, to really what the world of low vision could be for me as a person, and to ensure that I was able to live the life that I dreamt about and whilst understanding it was now looking a little different, It didn't mean that I couldn't chase those dreams. They just took me down a different pathway, which is how I ended up becoming a Paralympian. As someone who was a really sporty kid and a talented netballer at the time, as a as a youngster. And really, it was 15 years ago this year that I became an ambassador for Vision Australia, and it came about after I won my first Paralympic medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympics. I was still utilizing the services of Vision Australia, and the CEO at the time, I think was one the CEO at the time, I can't remember. It's been so long now.

Well, really, my relationship with Vision Australia started over 20 years ago when I was diagnosed as legally blind. And the first person that my ophthalmologist doctor, Lisa Reddington, put me in touch with was Vision Australia. And they really enabled me to understand my low vision, what it meant, how I could at the time I was in year 12. So they sent a occupational therapist out to the school to help educate the teachers on the things I could and couldn't see. And it really opened my eyes, and no pun intended, to really what the world of low vision could be for me as a person, and to ensure that I was able to live the life that I dreamt about and whilst understanding it was now looking a little different, It didn't mean that I couldn't chase those dreams. They just took me down a different pathway, which is how I ended up becoming a Paralympian. As someone who was a really sporty kid and a talented netballer at the time, as a as a youngster. And really, it was 15 years ago this year that I became an ambassador for Vision Australia, and it came about after I won my first Paralympic medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Paralympics. I was still utilizing the services of Vision Australia, and the CEO at the time, I think was one the CEO at the time, I can't remember. It's been so long now.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Asked if I would would get on board and help support the organisation and it was a no brainer for me. Having been the recipient of so much love and support from the Vision Australia community, it was a very natural fit to be able to put my hand up and hopefully give back to others. So they've been asking me for a couple of years to get involved with the hundred K your way, but being a Paralympian and with a lot of travel, it has been tricky trying to find the time as I'm often overseas. But this year was the year I'm not overseas in March or April, so it meant I could really dedicate myself to helping the cause and promoting a really worthwhile activity.

Asked if I would would get on board and help support the organisation and it was a no brainer for me. Having been the recipient of so much love and support from the Vision Australia community, it was a very natural fit to be able to put my hand up and hopefully give back to others. So they've been asking me for a couple of years to get involved with the hundred K your way, but being a Paralympian and with a lot of travel, it has been tricky trying to find the time as I'm often overseas. But this year was the year I'm not overseas in March or April, so it meant I could really dedicate myself to helping the cause and promoting a really worthwhile activity.

And we'd love to have you. And as you've mentioned there, you know, you've been a Paralympian. You've done it all really on the skiing, rowing, cycling, what have you. Now tying into that, how are you going to be doing your hundred K this April?

And we'd love to have you. And as you've mentioned there, you know, you've been a Paralympian. You've done it all really on the skiing, rowing, cycling, what have you. Now tying into that, how are you going to be doing your hundred K this April?

Oh, that's a big question Sam. I've been thinking about it and I feel like it's somewhat cheating. If I included my training that I'm currently doing as a paracyclist, I feel like that would just sort of be taking the easy option if I included the full time training I already do as a professional athlete, so I'm leaning towards doing the 100 k walking. I have to be a little bit careful. Running is a little bit tricky at the moment given my training for cycling, so I think I might be hitting the pavement and trying to notch up those KS through walking.

Oh, that's a big question Sam. I've been thinking about it and I feel like it's somewhat cheating. If I included my training that I'm currently doing as a paracyclist, I feel like that would just sort of be taking the easy option if I included the full time training I already do as a professional athlete, so I'm leaning towards doing the 100 k walking. I have to be a little bit careful. Running is a little bit tricky at the moment given my training for cycling, so I think I might be hitting the pavement and trying to notch up those KS through walking.

Let's go into the background of 100 K and why it is so important for Vision Australia and funding the vital services that they are able to provide? Why is something like 100 K so important to raise funds for Vision Australia and the programs they provide for people around the country who are blind or have low vision?

Let's go into the background of 100 K and why it is so important for Vision Australia and funding the vital services that they are able to provide? Why is something like 100 K so important to raise funds for Vision Australia and the programs they provide for people around the country who are blind or have low vision?

It's a really good question, Sam. I think it can be difficult to truly understand the impact that not for profit organisations like Vision Australia play for those individuals who benefit from their support. But if I take my own individual experiences, when I was diagnosed as legally blind, I knew nothing about the sector of people with low vision or blindness. It was this whole new world. And really, in order to enable myself to continue the life that I was living, to continue chasing my dreams, I needed to learn how to access support services. How was I going to get around as a person who was legally blind and all these sort of intricate things that you may not think about until you're now in that situation for yourself as an individual. And so for me, being able to come into Vision Australia to meet people who are similar to me, who have similar lived experiences, to learn the little tricks and tips that they might use to help access technology, the latest adaptive technology that they might find on a phone or a tablet that enables reading or typing easier. All those little things are just hard to access if you're not in the know with where the sector is going. And so for me, Vision Australia has really played that pivotal role in ensuring that I can always continue to push and challenge myself to reach my dreams with low vision. And so 100 K your way. It really encompasses the full spectrum of an experience for someone with low vision or blindness. You know, the funds raised might go to a young child who is newly diagnosed to helping support that child and their parents navigate through this experience and moving into a schooling system. Or it might help an older person who needs to be able to access their daily pills, or to be able to continue knitting or moving around and staying mobile. So there's the full spectrum of support that is available to someone. And so these funds that are raised really enable those supports to be provided to individuals who are blind or have low vision. So I think it's a wonderful way with 100 K your way, you can enter as an individual, you can enter with teams, you can enter with your school. And so everybody can get involved and enjoy the positive elements that exercise provides for us, whilst also raising some money for a really, really good cause.

It's a really good question, Sam. I think it can be difficult to truly understand the impact that not for profit organisations like Vision Australia play for those individuals who benefit from their support. But if I take my own individual experiences, when I was diagnosed as legally blind, I knew nothing about the sector of people with low vision or blindness. It was this whole new world. And really, in order to enable myself to continue the life that I was living, to continue chasing my dreams, I needed to learn how to access support services. How was I going to get around as a person who was legally blind and all these sort of intricate things that you may not think about until you're now in that situation for yourself as an individual. And so for me, being able to come into Vision Australia to meet people who are similar to me, who have similar lived experiences, to learn the little tricks and tips that they might use to help access technology, the latest adaptive technology that they might find on a phone or a tablet that enables reading or typing easier. All those little things are just hard to access if you're not in the know with where the sector is going. And so for me, Vision Australia has really played that pivotal role in ensuring that I can always continue to push and challenge myself to reach my dreams with low vision. And so 100 K your way. It really encompasses the full spectrum of an experience for someone with low vision or blindness. You know, the funds raised might go to a young child who is newly diagnosed to helping support that child and their parents navigate through this experience and moving into a schooling system. Or it might help an older person who needs to be able to access their daily pills, or to be able to continue knitting or moving around and staying mobile. So there's the full spectrum of support that is available to someone. And so these funds that are raised really enable those supports to be provided to individuals who are blind or have low vision. So I think it's a wonderful way with 100 K your way, you can enter as an individual, you can enter with teams, you can enter with your school. And so everybody can get involved and enjoy the positive elements that exercise provides for us, whilst also raising some money for a really, really good cause.

And following on from that, Jess, if people would love to head to your hundred K page or the numerous other 100 K your way pages that are now live for people to head along to donate, what's the best way for people to do that.

And following on from that, Jess, if people would love to head to your hundred K page or the numerous other 100 K your way pages that are now live for people to head along to donate, what's the best way for people to do that.

The simplest way is just to pop it straight into Google or whatever your search engine might be. Pop in Vision Australia 100 K your way and you will find the website. And the website is really easy to access. It has explainers on how it works. There's a leaderboard for those of us that might feel a little bit competitive and want to see how we're going in amongst everybody else taking part, and there's also some rewards that you can receive. So for those out there that are striving to really raise some significant funds, there are rewards along the way as well. So the website is fully accessible and allows you to really understand the impact that you might be making by raising those funds for Vision Australia.

The simplest way is just to pop it straight into Google or whatever your search engine might be. Pop in Vision Australia 100 K your way and you will find the website. And the website is really easy to access. It has explainers on how it works. There's a leaderboard for those of us that might feel a little bit competitive and want to see how we're going in amongst everybody else taking part, and there's also some rewards that you can receive. So for those out there that are striving to really raise some significant funds, there are rewards along the way as well. So the website is fully accessible and allows you to really understand the impact that you might be making by raising those funds for Vision Australia.

Perfect. Well, I've been speaking today with Jess Gallagher, Paralympian and 100 K your way, ambassador. Jess, thank you so much for your time today. It was great to catch up with you again and chat all about 100 K your way.

Perfect. Well, I've been speaking today with Jess Gallagher, Paralympian and 100 K your way, ambassador. Jess, thank you so much for your time today. It was great to catch up with you again and chat all about 100 K your way.

Thanks, Sam.

Thanks, Sam.