Young achiever: Ana Gerritsen keen to take on the world

Ana Gerritsen, 17, is helping organise this year's 40 Hour Famine in Tauranga. Photo / John Borren

Tauranga teen Ana Gerritsen is keen to shake things up on a global scale and has built a 150-strong army to help her cause.

Ana, 17, is co-captain of this year's World Vision 40 Hour Famine efforts at Bethlehem College.

The prefect has helped organise the school's involvement in the annual fundraiser, which this year focuses on helping refugee children of South Sudan.

Ana said about 150 students signed up to each go without food for 40 hours. Some Year 12 to 13 students also have the option of playing sports for 20 hours. Collectively, their efforts will contribute to World Vision's work providing essentials to South Sudanese refugees in Northern Uganda.

"At Bethlehem College, as a private school, a lot of people can remain in that bubble 'that we can't change how the world'. But the 40 Hour Famine is a big enough event to open people's eyes and show them there's a big world out there," Ana said.

"It's our responsibility to make a difference."

Last year, Ana joined a contingent of representatives from other schools around New Zealand which had raised the most money in the 40 Hour Famine. The group was invited to World Vision's Auckland office to see what it does and how it operates.

"That really opened my eyes.

"Those people in South Sudan can't do much to change their poverty cycle but us in New Zealand, we get seen as this small country on the other side of the globe, but we actually do have heart and we can really make a difference."

For students, the famine began on Tuesday night and will end today, with a school lunch involving each schoolhouse providing food from various countries around the world in a large-scale food court.

Ana said the constant organising, on top of her regular sports and schoolwork, can be difficult.

"But it's all a learning curve and experience and knowing what it's for is really helpful to motivate me to keep going. It's not just for students to have fun but for a wider cause. For kids less fortunate than us."

Ana said she was considering applying to become a World Vision ambassador next year.

For now though, she will be focusing on getting through her basketball games on an empty stomach.

World Vision 40 Hour Famine

The World Vision 40 Hour Famine is New Zealand's largest youth fundraising event. Every year since 1975, hundreds of thousands of young Kiwis have taken a stand through a 40-Hour Challenge to raise money and bring hope to thousands of children living in poverty in more than 40 countries. Traditionally, the 40 Hour-Challenge meant going without food. However, over the years, people have become creative, finding fun new challenges such as living in a box, doing 40 good deeds, and some have even gone as far as taking a 40-hour vow of silence.
So far, more than 2.7 million New Zealanders have taken part and nearly $79 million has been raised – helping to transform thousands of lives in New Zealand, and around the world.
Source - World Vision