April 3, 2010

Close Encounters with the Animal Kingdom

If you haven't heard this story about a woman who set off on a 40-mile paddle from Catalina island to Dana Point to raise awareness and funds for breast cancer research and was joined by a minke whale, I encourage you to read it now. The whale swam with her for almost two hours of her nine-hour journey, an experience she said was the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen in her life. She named him Larry and watched while he blew bubbles, fluked, and rolled over and showed her his belly.

Jodie Nelson is a professional surfer and Stand Up Paddleboard rider who had raised just $6000 toward her $100,000 goal when she set off on her paddle a few days ago. After the encounter with Larry made the front page of Yahoo news on Thursday, she hit her goal in less than 24 hours and raised it to $250,000.

Click here to read the inspirational tale.

No comments: