The 'Langley Crew'

Thank you riders for hopping on your bikes Saturday morning knowing the rain and cold were just around the corner. You are an amazing group of people who wanted to help make a difference in education in Rwanda, and your fundraising efforts will do just that… you’ve raised over $68,000! THANK YOU!

The sun on Sunday morning was a welcome friend. Aside from a few injuries, everyone made it safely across the finish.

Wellspring would also like to thank our many sponsors for donating prizes and items to support riders along the way. We’d also like to thank the many volunteers who made this event possible. Without them Lake2Lake would not have happened.

A few items for those of you involved in this year’s ride:

1. We have started to post photos from the ride to Facebook and our Flickr account. You can also check the sidebar to the right for photos fed in from Flickr. If you’ve got a Facebook account, we’d love it if you would tag yourself and your friends in the photos. If you have photo’s, we’d love it if you were able to post your photos to online as well (you can add them to our Facebook Album if you like), just let us know where you’ve put them.
2. Check your email for a survey from us. It got sent out about a week ago. We’re looking for feedback from both Riders and Volunteers to help make 2012′s Lake2Lake even better. If you haven’t completed it yet, we would be thankful if you did that now.

We are so excited for next year and hope to see all of you there! Stay tuned for the announcement of next year’s dates!

Speaking of fundraising, I have been amazed by the fundraising ‘techniques’ you have been using. For example:

• A BBQ in Williams Lake
• An individual Email campaign complete with a QR code thermometer
• Press releases sent by riders to local papers sharing the Lake2Lake story
• Personal fundraising pages used to spread the word via email & Facebook
• Asking family & friends face to face, or over the phone
• Giving to another rider who in turns gives to another

There have been a lot of traditional and creative methods.

Thank you for choosing to fundraise. Some of you reached your goal, some have surpassed it and others are nearly there. Your hard work makes a world of a difference in Rwanda.

Here’s a couple of things to give you an idea of the impact:

• $100 can purchase 200 bricks or provide 2 months of training and mentorship for a Rwandan teacher.
• $200 can purchase 10 school desks or provide 4 months of training and mentorship for a Rwandan teacher.
• $500 can purchase a laptop computer for ACT Rwanda, provide nearly a year of training an mentorship for a Rwandan teacher, or purchase enough cement, rock, and sand to set the foundation for half a classroom.
• $1200 provides a month of support for one of our Rwandan Teacher Trainers who will impact 40 Public School teachers who in turn will impact up to 2400 students.

Edouard Munyeragwe is the Head Teacher of Gasabo Primary School, one of the public schools that Wellspring's Techer Trainers work with. Click on the above photo to read about Edouard being celebrated as a Star Leader.

Now for a little bit of housekeeping. If you have collected cash or cheques, please bring them, along with the completed pledge forms, to the ride. Those of you close to your fundraising goal–keep it up, you’re doing great and you still have time. All donations need to be into Wellspring by October 15.

Thanks again for partnering with us. I look forward to seeing you all this weekend!

Jayson

A friendly reminder that Wellspring’s Lake2Lake Ride early bird deadline is July 31. Register today and save $50. Make sure to check out the ‘fundraise with us‘ page.

Can’t ride? Why not volunteer?

Find out more about the types of volunteers we need to ensure a safe & fun ride.

Can’t ride or Volunteer?

Are you unable to ride or volunteer but would still like to be a part of the inaugural Lake2Lake Ride? How about pledging support for one of the riders?

Click here to make a donation to the Lake2Lake ride

Ed Lifton with Wellspring Executive Director Richard Taylor justafter finishing the inaugural Lake2Lake Ride for Rwanda

Ed Lifton was self-employed in the food business. Not really concerned about being involved in the community. Doing what he needed to do to keep his head above water.

Then someone encouraged him to ride in The Wellspring Foundation’s inaugural Lake2Lake Ride for Rwanda.

Ed had been riding his older steel-framed bike to work everyday and thought he should check the ride out. While researching he found out the ride was a fundraiser for the Wellspring Foundation for Education: a nonprofit working to empower the next generation of Rwandan leaders through education that transforms lives.

It impressed him. This was not just a commercial event, filling someone’s pocket at the end of it. It was to help those less fortunate, it was for something bigger than money, bigger than himself. That’s when it hit home. He had never done anything like it before.

He registered. He rode. He finished.

Ed was the oldest rider of the inaugural Lake2Lake, but that didn’t hinder him. He was supported the whole way through encouragement from other riders & volunteers. “The support team made it possible,” he stressed. Sure he went into the ride a little naive—on an older steel framed bike and with no idea of the commitment needed to go 220km—but he did it. And, he wants to encourage you to do it as well—it had a tremendous impact on his life.

“Since riding Lake2Lake, I have been motivated to make changes in my life. I was very conscious about my weight and over the winter I lost 25lbs. I’m [also] making a commitment to get involved more, to contribute to the community,” says Ed.

Ed retired a couple of weeks ago. What did he do to celebrate on the Canada Day long weekend? He went on a 2-day Kettle Valley Railway ride in the Kootenays—motivated by his experience at Lake2Lake. Lake2Lake helped him realize he could do it.

Ed is committed to riding Lake2Lake this year: “I was on the first one. Healthwise I’m feeling really good, I want to continue [riding] for many years.” Oh, and yes he’ll have a different bike this year!

Inspired by Ed? I am. Why not join us in October on the Lake2Lake Ride for Rwanda? Early Bird Deadline is July 31st!

For those of you interested in riding, the early bird deadline for registration is July 31st. After that the rate goes up by $50, so if you’re sitting on the fence, I’d take the next week or so to make your decision. We only have room for 150 riders.

The first weekend in October is a great date for cyclists—especially up in the Okanagan/Shuswap—as the weather has been fantastic in recent years and it’s a great close to the riding season. Here’s a snippet from the press release:

Cyclists from across North America will converge in the Okanagan this fall to participate in The Wellspring Foundation for Education‘s 2nd Annual Lake2Lake Ride for Rwanda, October 1-2, 2011. Lake2Lake is a two day, fully supported ride stretching over 220km in BC’s stunning Okanagan and Shuswap regions. Funds raised by cycling in Lake2Lake will impact thousands of Rwandan children through Wellspring’s involvement in schools throughout Rwanda. Register Now!

We also need volunteers to once again make this ride a success. The 2010 Lake2Lake would not have been possible if it wasn’t for our ‘crew’. Interested in volunteering? Find out more here.

If you rode last year, please leave a comment below letting people know what you loved about the Lake2Lake Ride for Rwanda.

Hope you can join us the first weekend in October,
Team Wellspring

PS: If you live in Vernon, we’ll be hanging up a banner at MacDonald Park (corner of 43 Avenue & 27 Street) advertising the ride and taking a photo to run in the papers with our story. We’d love to have you join us tonight (July 5) at 5pm.

Marvin Penner on Day 2 of Wellspring's Lake2Lake Ride, wearing the Project Rwanda cycling jersey he won the night before.

We not sure when the film will be released, but once we know we’ll be sure to let you know.

Cycling is a platform to kinda highlight the new Rwandan story of recovery… and success.

The rider range was great: from a young fit teenager to a mature bicycle commuter and everything in between. They rode all kinds of bikes: from fancy racing bikes to vintage mountain bikes, there was talk of a tricycle amongst the organizers but logic prevailed.

The best part? Everyone finished the ride safely, with bright smiles and excellent memories. The Lake2Lake ride is set to become a classic!

Wellspring would like to thank our many sponsors for donating prizes and items to support riders along the 220km ride. We’d also like to thank the many volunteers who made this event possible. Without them Lake2Lake would not have happened.

A few items for those of you involved in this year’s ride:

1. We have started to post photos from the ride to our Flickr account. Check the sidebar to the right for photos →
   If you have photo’s, we’d love it if you were able to post your photos online as well, just let us know where you’ve put them. If you have a Flickr account, tag your photos with Lake2LakeRide and they will automatically display on the Lake2Lake website.
2. Check your email for a survey from us. We’re looking for feedback from both Riders and Volunteers to help make 2011′s Lake2Lake even better.

We are so excited for next year and hope to see all of you there.

Deadline to register is this Sunday, September 26th. If you haven’t registered yet or know someone who wants to ride, please remind them of the deadline and encourage them to register now!

The Team Wellspring jerseys have been picked up, the Lake2Lake Rider & Crew t-shirts are being done and many of you riders are raising funds to help Wellspring impact the next generation of leaders in Rwanda through an education that transforms lives.

If you missed it in your registration confirmation email, the Lake2Lake Rider Package is available for download here. It contains a bunch of information on the ride: maps, locations, start times; as well as fundraising information and pledge forms.

We looking forward to seeing you at the Start Line!

Team Wellspring

If you have, post a comment below and let us know why you’re riding.

A friendly reminder that Wellspring’s Lake2Lake Ride early bird deadline is September 7. Register today and save $35 for our October 2 + 3 ride. Don’t forget to check out the ‘fundraise with us‘ page.

Can’t ride? Why not volunteer?

Find out more about the types of volunteers we need to ensure a safe & fun ride.

Can’t ride or Volunteer?

Are you unable to ride or volunteer but would still like to be a part of the inaugural Lake2Lake Ride? How about pledging support for one of the riders?

Click here to make a donation to the Lake2Lake ride

Please put Lake2Lake in the Comments field of the donation form