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12 - The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday January 30, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Big donations needed to make dream come true Continued from page 11 that proves they can meet the challenge. Last summer, they spent several thousand dollars out of their own pocket to equip a vehicle and then travelled across Canada, proceeding south to Moab, Utah by following the Continental Divide. They endured seven days of baking 55 and 60 C weather to test equipment and train for the 2008 challenge. The trip was recorded by JPFreek magazine. "We came back looking like lobsters," said Kedian, noting they experienced equipment malfunctions and failure, blistering temperatures and more. "But we did it, we made it out alive," he said. Overland Expeditions (Overland Expedition Group Inc.) is a non-profit corporation dedicated to supporting local charity organizations through personal challenge and adventure travel by way of vehicledependent expeditions to remote regions of the world. "Currently, the team is short by a lot of required equipment to complete this challenge. Our biggest and most challenging item to receive is two 4 X 4 vehicles capable of traversing such terrain. "The team would require the backing of a manufacturer or dealership to have this provision," said Kedian. The Oakville resident said his team hopes to start off its expedition from the Toronto Hospital for Sick Children on Sept. 6, travelling west to Vancouver and making appearances along the way to promote the challenge and raise funds and awareness for the Sick Kids Foundation. Upon reaching Vancouver, the team will travel north through British Columbia and the Yukon Territory into the Northwest Territories stopping in Inuvik. And that's when things will get really tough. After a brief stopover for fuel and supplies, the team will then head southeast almost completely off road and continue along until it crosses into northern Saskatchewan and heads back to finish at Sick Kids hospital. Asked if they might feel like flying home, Kedian, said, "We can't, we have to drive back." Kedian said that any equipment donated to the expedition will be auctioned off at the end of the journey, vehicles included, and all financial returns "We came back looking like lobsters, but we did it, we made it out alive." Dion Kedian, Overland Expeditions would also go to Sick Kids. "The team will be taking zero financial gain from this and will finish the challenge with everything they started with financially. The only thing the team will take from this challenge is the satisfaction of completing a major accomplishment and supporting the charity," said Kedian. Any monetary donations to cover the cost of fuel and other items that are not used would also be donated to the hospital in Toronto. For potential equipment and vehicle sponsors, the team is offering public exposure of the equipment and its association with the challenge and at stopping points en route. Kedian, who functions as president of Overland Expeditions, moved to Oakville when he was four years old. He attended Linbrook and E. J. James public schools, Oakville Trafalgar High School and then MacLachlan Preparatory College. Kedian went to Sheridan College's law and security program and after working as a security guard at Oakville Place is now in bylaw enforcement with the City of Mississauga. Greber is Overland's Vehicle and Navigation manager when he's not working at the Chrysler operation in Brampton. He has taken a variety of navigation courses with the University of Toronto and has mapped the team's route using satellite imaging technology, according to Kedian. The two became acquainted through a Jeep club, the K.J. Expeditionary Group, Kedian established in Oakville in 2005. Kedian said besides trail rides closer to home, he has made trips to the Florida Everglades and the Rockies in British Columbia. Magaro and Kedian have been friends for a dozen years and Magaro, another Sheridan alumni, has turned her web, graphics and photography skills to good use for Overland Expeditions, in addition to the photography business she and Kedian operate. With just under nine months left before the challenge takes off, Kedian and crew are working hard to get the sponsorships needed to ensure it will happen. The team chose Sick Kids as their charity of choice for the expedition noting that while most cities have their own hospital for sick children, it's the Toronto hospital that has ties not only across Canada, but world-wide, and a unique reputation in its field. Kedian has posted his event on a web page for donations with the Sick Kids Foundation website. For more information, contact Overland Expeditions by visiting kjexpgroup.com, email info@kjexpgroup.com or call 905-808-0918. 70 OUR SAVE UP TO % OFF FALL/WINTER Offer valid on selected merchandise only, while quantities last. COLLECTION lavieenrose.com