In 2016, I attempted to become the youngest person to swim across Lake Ontario from Niagara-on-the-Lake to Toronto, a distance of 52km. After swimming for over 24 hours and less than 300 metres from shore, my crew was forced to pull me out of the water due to lightning. Given I had trained for four years, I was heartbroken. Three days later, I decided I wasn’t going to let the lake beat me, and I was determined to try again.
Therefore, this summer I will be attempting to swim 88km from Rochester, New York to Brighton, Ontario. This route is the widest point of the lake, and it has never been attempted before.
My swim will be taking place any day from July 7th- July 14th, 2018 depending on weather conditions. I have a backup period from August 21-31.
I am inspired by my grandfather, who cycled across Canada several times. He used to tell me stories about his adventures, struggles, and mishaps he encountered along the way. Sadly, he passed away in March this year. Only three weeks earlier, I also lost my mother to a rare illness. Despite this very difficult time in my life, I am determined to keep going, and I know my mom and grandad are right there with me.
In 2016, I raised over $7000 for the Music Heals Canada, a Canadian Registered Charity that promotes and raises awareness for music therapy programs across the country. I chose Music Heals because it combined my two interests in life: music and health. I have been playing both the piano and the classical guitar for eight years, and I want to study medicine at university. This year, I am very excited to be working with Music Heals again, and I have set a fundraising goal of $10,000.
Throughout the next couple of months, I will be sharing news, updates and photos about my training and my crossing attempt itself on social media:
Facebook.com/mayaswim2018
@mayaswim2018 (Instagram and Twitter)
Thank you for your interest and support!
Maya
Please consider donating to Music Heals Canada, which you can do through this giving group. You can learn more about Music Heals at musicheals.ca. Also, you can help to promote my swim by sharing news posted on my social media pages, which are listed above.
My name is Maya Farrell, and I am 15 years old. I live in Ottawa, Ontario with my family. I love music, my pet golden retriever, Gemma, and swimming across lakes!
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