You Can Ride Two is back at Broxton Park School in Spruce Grove on March 4, 2016 (1-7 PM), adapting bikes for kids with special needs and teaching them to ride. Haven’t heard of this unique organization? Check out my previous blog article detailing the great work they do.   The Rotary Club of Spruce Grove is proud to be involved with this organization.

Exhibits and Vendors

You Can Ride 2’s Try a Bike events include exhibits by many groups supporting children with disabilities, such as the Children’s Ability Fund, Sport Central, Variety the Children’s Charity, Free 2B Me, the Cerebral Palsy Association in Alberta, the Paralympic Sports Association, KidSport, and many others. In addition, select vendors such as Renu Cycle, Trivel and others will be present.

Sponsorship

Sponsorship of exhibits and vendor tables goes a long way in allowing You Can Ride 2 to cover the cost of assigning, maintaining and modifying bikes to meet the needs of children. If your business or service club can help out, please contact You Can Ride 2.

Volunteers

Volunteers (individuals, service clubs, school groups and the like) are urgently needed for a variety of tasks. Bike mechanics in particular are wanted for the March 4 event. Please visit You Can Ride 2’s “Support Us” page for a list of volunteer opportunities.

Donations

You Can Ride 2’s loan pool now has about 120 bikes, and can always use more. Anyone wishing to donate a used bike to the program is asked to bring it to the event. Each bike donated enters you into a draw for a signed Edmonton Eskimos football and helps allow another child to experience the joy of riding a bike. Donations of cash are always welcome as well!

Registration

Currently there are around 110 kids registered for the Try a Bike event on March 4! Parents of kids with special needs are invited to contact You Can Ride 2 for information about this program.

One final thing:  Name You Can Ride 2’s new mascot (supplied by the Rotary Club of Spruce Grove), and you could win a $100 MEC gift certificate!

As a proud Rotarian, I’m delighted to be able to help this worthwhile organization.  Comments or questions? Call or text me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.

I’ve written before about some of my activities with the Rotary Club of Spruce Grove. I enjoy helping other people, and I find that this club allows me to get involved in causes I might not have otherwise been aware of.

Recently, Spruce Grove Rotarians were asked to volunteer in support of a local organization called YouCanRide2.  This organization held an event a few months ago at Broxton Park School in Spruce Grove that was both rewarding and inspiring.

YouCanRide2 adapts bicycles for kids with special needs and teaches them to ride. These kids suffer from conditions such as Down syndrome, spina bifida, cerebral palsy and autism. In some cases, these kids may never walk, but they can be taught to ride a bike. This one thing can have a major impact on these children and their families, bringing mobility to children who may have never experienced it before, and improved mental health to the most vulnerable in our community.

At the heart of YouCanRide2 are 3 pediatric physiotherapists: Janine Halayko, Melanie Harris, and Trent Magis. These three core people coordinate the large team of dedicated volunteers needed to run the “Borrow a Bike” program. The need for this program became evident when Janine was working with a child with cerebral palsy to teach him how to ride a bike. After 8 months of effort, and trial and error, she realized that no ordinary bike even with adaptations would do. The $3000 bike this child needed to be independent was far too expensive for the family, and could not be covered by any other agency. With the support of the Edmonton Bicycle Commuters Society and Trent’s help, the idea for the “Borrow a Bike” program was born.

This story is not just about the children and families who are helped. It is about determination and volunteerism. Determination happens when everyone around you tells you what you are trying to do is too difficult to accomplish. And this is also about volunteerism – on steroids! Two of YouCanRide2’s core people are working moms with 3 children each of their own. Yet, they can volunteer 20-30 hours a week supporting this cause, and inspiring and leading dozens of other volunteers to help needy children.

YouCanRide2 is unique to Alberta and probably unique to all of Canada. Some of the bikes are donated, but they still require adapting to a specific child’s needs. For some of the more severely challenged, specialized bikes can run as high as $5000. Money is also needed for storage and transport of the bikes. This year, the goal of YouCanRide2 is to adapt 100 bikes for kids in the Edmonton area.

At the Rotary Club’s annual Lobsterfest, held this year on May 30, 2015, I made a video appeal for funding for this worthwhile organization, and I am delighted to report that the astounding sum of $91,000 was raised! I am overwhelmed by the compassion and generosity of Spruce Grove and area residents, and I know that YouCanRide2 will be able to do so much good with the money.

If you would like to contribute money, bikes that could be adapted, or expertise, please contact me, or get in touch with YouCanRide2 directly through their website.  Believe me, you’ll feel good for helping out!

Can you help? Please call or text me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.

(Photos used in this post are from You Can Ride Two’s website at http://www.youcanridetwo.ca/)

The holiday season always seems to bring out the spirit of giving in people in the Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County and Edmonton region.  While most of us exchange gifts with family and friends, many of us actively look for ways to help others.  My assistant told me about her brother and his family living in Vancouver who load up their vehicle every Christmas Day with sandwiches, cookies, oranges and warm beverages to distribute to the homeless on Hastings Street in downtown Vancouver.  I started wondering what opportunities for helping beyond tossing bills into a Salvation Army kettle there might be in our area.

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Local churches

If you belong to a church, you already know the programs and opportunities offered by your church.  If you are looking to join a local church, check out the comprehensive list in my Community Connections Business Directory.  Click on “Jump to Category” and then “Churches: Parkland County”, “Churches: Spruce Grove”, “Churches: Stony Plain”.  This information is also available in the Green Book Community Resource Directory.

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Parkland Food Bank

www.parklandfoodbank.org, 105 Madison Crescent, Spruce Grove AB T7X 3A3

780-962-4565

The Food Bank’s Stuff a Bus campaign ended on November 30, but donations of non-perishable food items and cash are welcomed with gratitude and enthusiasm all year round.  Volunteers will be put to work too!

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Tender Hearts Foundation

See article in The Grove Examiner entitled “Santa’s local workshop in Parkland County”

Shoeboxes containing small gifts and treats are assembled and given to the elderly residents of nursing homes in the Parkland region.  Contact Joann Babineau to donate or volunteer:

#2, 52224, RR 275, Stony Plain AB T7Z 1Z3

Phone 780-968-0065

Email joreid@tbwifi.ca

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Kinette Club of Spruce Grove Christmas Hampers

Working with local schools, businesses and other service clubs, the Kinettes assemble and distribute 100s of hampers containing food, food certificates and gifts to needy families in Spruce Grove.

PO Box 3664, Spruce Grove AB T7X 2A9

780-962-2088

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Kinsmen Club of Stony Plain Christmas Hampers

PO Box 2231, Stony Plain AB T7Z 1X7

780-915-6934

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Parkland Area Youth Emergency Shelter (PAYES)

PO Box 2732, Stony Plain AB T7Z 1Y2

780-963-3595

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Christmas Bureau of Edmonton

“Providing a Festive Meal to Edmonton Families in Need”.  Donations are used to provide food hampers and food certificates.  The Christmas Bureau also coordinates with 630 CHED Santas Anonymous and the Edmonton Sun Adopt-a-Teen program.

Mailing address:  Christmas Bureau of Edmonton, PO BOX 16000, Edmonton AB T5J 4B4

Street address:  2^nd Floor, 4230-118 Ave NW, Edmonton AB T5W 1A4 (2^nd floor of Servus Credit Union Building)

Phone:  780-454-6074

Email:  mail@christmasbureau.ca

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630 CHED Santas Anonymous

Since 1955 providing toys for needy children in Edmonton.  Donations and volunteers welcome all year round, and toys right up until Christmas.  Toy deliveries for 2013 are taking place on December 14 and 15; drivers are always needed.

Santa’s Depot 12345-121 St, Edmonton

Mailing address and year-round donations:  5204-84 St NW, Edmonton AB T6E 5N8

Email:  santa@santasanonymous.ca

780-428-TOYS (8697)

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Edmonton Sun Adopt-a-Teen Program

Providing gifts for teens aged 13-17 from low income families in the Edmonton area.

2^nd  Floor, 4230-118 Ave, Edmonton AB T5W 1A4

info@adoptateenedmonton.ca

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Women’s Shelters:

Women’s shelters are always in need of clothing, bedding, toiletries and children’s articles including toys, but the need is especially acute at Christmas.  Contact them to find out how you can help.

—Edmonton Women’s Shelter (WIN House)

PO Box 20088, Edmonton AB T5W 5E6

780-471-6709

ewsed@winhouse.org

—Lurana Shelter 

780-429-2002

director@luranashelter.com

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Youth Empowerment and Support Services

(formerly Youth Emergency Shelter Society)

9310-82 Ave, Edmonton AB T6C 0Z6

780-468-7070

yess@yess.org

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The Mustard Seed Edmonton 

Christmas Giving Opportunities.  http://www.theseed.ca/Christmas-Giving-Opportunities-Edmonton.html  Click on this link for a list of specific items (such as a travel mug filled with a coffee gift certificate, thermal socks, hand wipes, bus tickets, pocket hand warmers and a note of encouragement) that this organization gives to the needy at Christmas.

Mailing address:  PO Box 1842, Main Post Office, Edmonton AB T5J 2P2

Street address:  10568-114 St, Edmonton AB

780-426-5600

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So many formal organizations exist for helping others all year round, and many are specialized by type or age of person.  If this style of giving doesn’t appeal, why not look even closer to home?  Maybe there is an elderly or disabled person, or a young mother alone with her kids living on your street who could use your help in many ways, such as shoveling the driveway or getting groceries or providing a ride to an appointment.  And the best part is that when you help others in this way, you help yourself too!

I always welcome your comments and questions.  Call or text me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.