Kincardine area man cycling across Canada with group to alleviate poverty
Stuart VanderVaart (right), 66, of Blair's Grove, south of Kincardine, is part of a group cycling across Canada to raise money and awareness to help alleviate poverty.
Participating in the Sea to Sea Cycle Ride, VanderVaart and more than 50 riders and support crew, will be arriving at Tobermory, Monday, Aug. 7, on the 3:15 p.m. ferry. The ride began in White Rock, British Columbia, June 26, and ends in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Aug. 29.
The group will be staying at the Happy Hearts Campground in Tobermory, Monday night; bike to Meaford, Tuesday, and stay at the Roebuck Campground, before heading on to Orillia.
In his blog, VanderVaart says that for his 66th birthday, he wanted to ride his bicycle across Canada. So, he joined the Sea to Sea Ride to help alleviate poverty through the work of World Renew and Partners Worldwide.
"This cause is very dear to me and it is what motivated me most to go on this journey," he says. "I appreciate all the help I can get. The goal is to raise a minimum of $12,000 per rider, but I would like to see the funding go way beyond that initial goal. All donations are tax deductible. Together we can make a difference in fighting poverty!"
So far, VanderVaart has raised $21,482.25; his goal was $18,000. To follow his progress on-line, visit his blog at: stuvancrosscan.wordpress.com/author/stuvancrosscan/
Stuart VanderVaart of Blair's Grove on the Sea to Sea Cycle Trip; photos courtesy of VanderVaart's blog and the Sea to Sea website
Sea to Sea is a bicycling mission fighting poverty through fund-raising and awareness. Poverty is a real, immediate problem - 800-million people live in extreme poverty in the world today and nearly half of the world is living on less than $2.50 per day. Sea to Sea is a response to global poverty - we can work, and should be working, toward solutions. So we cycle.
How we fight poverty: Sea to Sea supports the co-hosts, Partners Worldwide and World Renew, in their efforts to fight poverty around the world.
Partners Worldwide is a global Christian network that uses business as the way to end poverty. It partners with local businesses and businesspeople around the world to use four methods - mentoring, training, access to capital, and advocacy - with the mission of ending poverty.
World Renew envisions a world where people experience and extend Christ’s compassion and live together in hope as God’s community. Through microloans, community development, and savings groups, World Renew is equipping people struggling with poverty, to change their stories so that more communities can achieve enough food, good health, fruitful work, and greater peace and justice.
The genesis of Sea to Sea can be traced back to a memo written Nov. 2, 2002. A missionary nurse’s description of a fund-raiser that spanned the Appalachian trail inspired the Sea to Sea Cycle Ride. After three years of planning, the first Sea to Sea tour celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Christian Reformed Church in Canada and funded church planting and multiplication in Canada.
Since then, Sea to Sea tours have raised more than $5.5-million to support more than 100 organizations focused on ending poverty, locally and globally. Today, Sea to Sea, hosted by World Renew and Partners Worldwide, continues to partner with churches and non-profit organizations focused on freeing people from the cycle of poverty.
For more information about the bike ride, visit the website at: seatosea.org
Day 26 - Vassar to Baudette, Minnesota - Today, we crossed into the United States. It was quite a procedure. We needed to be together, so after we left camp, we met in one spot and crossed together. We were all processed one-by-one. The port authority wanted a group shot, so after we were all checked, we posed under cover. It was fortunate that the photo was taken because it started to rain as a thunderstorm passed; excerpt from VanderVaart's blog
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