"Storm" certainly was the word of the day Saturday (Aug. 9) when the African Storm Festival, the Stormy ultramarathon race and stormy weather collided to create well, a perfect storm.The weather didn't put a damper on the fundraising festival, however, as locals and visitors gathered at the finish line of the Stormy ultra-marathon trail race. "The horizontal rainstorm during event setup around 10 a.m. looked like an omen for poor attendance," said Rich Rawling, one of the event organizers. "But as the skies dried up, performers, runners, and local viewers started appearing from everywhere." African Storm's goal was to raise awareness and funds for The SAM Project. Over 200 people attended the festival, lingering at the finish line, listening to the music of the Mike Weterings Band from Vancouver, bidding on silent auction items, and purchasing raffle tickets. Chitenge fabrics - colourful printed cloth brought over from Zambia - billowed in the wind and were a popular auction item. These and many other items, helped raise over $2,000 for The SAM Project, which helps to create sustainable micro-businesses in small communities in Zambia affected by HIV/AIDS.The SAM Project was founded by Colin and Sandra Eves in memory of their 16-year old son Sam for which the project was named, as well as standing for Sustainability through Agriculture and Micro-Enterprises."We were very happy about the outcome of the day and about getting the word out about this project to the people of Squamish," said Colin. "It was also great to be able to work with the organizers of Stormy, who were really helpful."While the festival was about fun and games, it was also about raising awareness of the tremendous challenges facing this impoverished country. A large sign graphically depicted the enormous disparities between life in Canada and in Zambia. The chart compared the 80-year life expectancy of a Canadian to 37 years for a Zambian, and stated 69 per cent of Zambians live on less than $1 a day. According to another sign, this level of poverty means "an average Zambian needs to work two weeks to afford a $10 shovel or nearly a year to buy a $200 shade cloth to shelter a seed nursery." The education component extended to another contest: naming the African countries, with hints provided. Squamish resident, Volker Schneider, won first place by naming all but one of the 48 countries. Overall, event organizers and participants were pleased by the outcome of this first-year event. Heather Evans of Squamish noted that: "African Storm brought a global flair to a great community event."
