From all walks of life

Friendly rivalry between Auckland and Wellington bloggers has led to a fundraising effort where the only winner will be the people of Canterbury.
Three Kings resident Gail Burgess - whose daughter Olivia featured on the front page of The Aucklander this week - is the leader of an Auckland team of walkers to take on Wellington counterparts on April 2.
"Basically, I've organised a Walk 4 Christchurch which will be held on Saturday, April 2. I posted the idea on my blog and set up a fundraising page inviting people to sponsor me, join me and collect more sponsors," Mrs Burgess says. "We are walking the Coast to Coast walk which is about 16km across the Auckland isthmus.
"A blogging friend in Wellington has decided to set up a similar walk and now we are competing: Auckland vs Wellington - who can raise the most, but collectively encouraging each other.
"It's cool partnering together to do something from a distance."
At a recent tally of sponsorship, the Auckland one had raised $1100 and the Welly one $750. "A lot is coming in from Kiwi ex-pats who are feeling the distance," saysd Mrs Burgess, who also arranged a walk for Haiti last year..
"The Auckland team so far has 12 people walking - with a few more keen to sign up. Some are people I don't know, but they have heard through friends and are gathering sponsors. Wellington has 18 people walking. It's quite exciting."
Mrs Burgess is keen to get people thinking about doing something to help Christchurch. "It's about encouraging and mobilising people to give to the cause."
Watch and support
To follow the progress of the walkers, see:
http://www.fundraiseonline.co.nz/GailBurgess4CHCH/
http://www.fundraiseonline.co.nz/WellyWalksTheWalk/