Riding through 110 countries for a cause

Wissam Al Jayyoussi will ride through 110 countries and 6 continents on a motorcycle in 18 months to raise awareness for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund (PCRF).

The founder of the Goodwill Journey, a charitable mission, hopes to raise $2.5 million (Dh9,182,874) for children in need of medical services in the Arab world.

Initially, Al Jayoussi embarked on mountain-climbing to help raise awareness, but soon realising it wasn’t the ideal method of raising awareness, he decided to travel the world on his motorcycle to spread his message and raise money.

“The turning point for me was when a father called me to help his daughter,” said Al Jayyoussi. “His daughter had scored the highest grade across the country, Palestine. But the father was so poor he wished she had failed instead so he wouldn’t feel guilty about not being able to send her to university.”

After the father’s phone call, Al Jayyoussi took up his first trip, a mountain climb, to raise funds for women wishing to further their education. He managed to raise money to help the Palestinian girl enroll to university, along with 13 other women.

After that mission, Al Jayyoussi turned his focus on helping children needing medical attention. These missions hold a different meaning for him, as he now has a child of his own.

“I have a one-and-half-year-old daughter, and even if she gets the flu, I worry,” he said. “It’s completely different now when I go on these missions to help other children.”