Choose Your Own Adventure – Mongolia Edition
Julie Veloo |
TEDxDarkhan
• October 2021
NOTE FROM TED: TEDx events are independently organized by volunteers. The guidelines we give TEDx organizers are described in more detail here: http://storage.ted.com/tedx/manuals/tedx_content_guidelines.pdf
Born the youngest of 6 children and raised in a small town in Northern B.C. Canada, Julie never expected she would end up in Mongolia, feeding, caring for, and educating hundreds of Mongolian children in need at her two Narnii Huuhduud kindergartens. She and her husband, Chelvan, a Mining Engineer and the President of Veloo Foundation, have lived and worked in Indonesia, Australia, and The United States before settling in Mongolia.
During her 10 years here, Julie has taken up horseback riding, and now, every year, with Saraa and Baagii of Horse Trek Mongolia hosts and rides the longest annual charity ride on the planet – The Gobi Gallop – along with a suite of other charity rides across Mongolia. In 2022 she will ride the record breaking 3,600 km / 84 day Blue Wolf Totem Expedition to raise funds for her project. Since first riding here at the age of 50 Julie has logged in excess of 35,000 km on horseback across the wilds of Mongolia.
Julie is passionate about Mongolia and all things Mongolian and is committed to sustainable and fiscally transparent philanthropy She is thrilled to be able to incorporate her love of Mongolian culture and history into Veloo Foundation's Soaring Crane Summer Camp out in the countryside of Sonjin Boldog. The camp is a traditional Mongolian-themed camp experience in English and Mongolian alike and offers 3 paying camps a year in English to fund the remaining camps for 250 Mongolian children in need. In addition to the two Narnii Huuhduud Kindergartens and the Soaring Crane Summer Camp, Veloo Foundation also operates the Fran London Centre for the Fabric Arts, (Tuskhan Brand), The Gandys Kids Campus Community Library and a number of other educational, employment, and community outreach programs in the Songino Khairkhan District of Ulaanbaatar.
Now 60, Julie expects to continue her epic long-distance riding in Mongolia and will continue making a difference in the lives of children in need as long as she is able