Ride Don’t Hide Raises Funds For Mental Illness
Sunday, June 23, 2013 @ 11:45 AM
(Cyclists stretch out across River Road Sunday for first-ever Ride Don’t Hide fundraiser. Photo 250 NEWS)
Prince George, B.C. – Prince George hosted its first-ever Ride Don’t Hide event Sunday to raise funds and awareness for mental health programs for women and their families.
Riders and their bikes gathered at the Winton Global parking lot under a bright, sunny sky to ride routes of 1.5, 2.6 or 20 kilometres along river road. All proceeds of the ride go to the local branch of the Canadian Mental Health Association. The event, sponsored by Shoppers Drug Mart, is being held province-wide for the first time this year.
The president of the local branch of the association, Maureen Davis, says the event started three years ago on the lower mainland with 50 riders. She says it was started three years ago by a Vancouver man who lives with bipolar disorder. “Riding was his way of being able to feel healthy and cope with life. Since then it’s grown from there and CMHA has taken this on as kind of a banner event, and you’ll be seeing this every year from this point onwards.”
Sherry Ogasawara with Northern Health noted that 13 B.C. communities are taking part in the ride and says organizers are about one-quarter away from reaching their fundraising target this year. Shoppers Drug Mart team member Frank Lucarelli says it’s the first year the company has been involved, with all 160 stores across the province firmly behind the event. “Really the goal here is to be healthy in mind, body and spirit and today we’re going to achieve that today.”
Robin Long, a local lady who has a mental health illness, told participants “when I was 18 I was diagnosed with something along the lines of schizophrenia and was put on medication. Through the years it hasn’t been fun. You can imagine day in and day out, all the different side effects, then new meds and new side effects, ya it hasn’t been fun. Then finally in 2001 I started a new medication that has really helped me and, with the help of the Canadian Mental Health Association, I was able to get my life back in order and I learned how to deal with my situation on a daily basis. My illness went from bipolar schizophrenia to ADD, I got a job in their store, and I like to be who I am, I’m pretty happy with my life.”
Comments
Admirable, but get use to this folks. When government under funds, or cuts funding, to mental health and multiple other health issues, it falls on our (the taxpayers) shoulders to fund raise and donate!
We are not digging into our pockets deep enough, dig deeper people, dig deeper!!!
We just about lost the Prince George Highway Rescue earlier this spring because of government cutbacks to their funding.
blog/view/27727/1/fort+george+highway+rescue+needs+rescuing
Same old, same old…
There’s only one taxpayer, People1st. Whether the money comes from the goverment or from you directly it makes little difference. There are no shortage of organizations and ‘good causes’ with their hands out.
“There is only one taxpayer, People1st. Whether the money comes from the government or from you directly it makes little difference.”
Oh really? How about Corporate tax? Last time I checked corporations were not people and are a different source of revenue (money) for the government. What about people who are voluntarily taxed? Every hear of a Pigovian tax? Yup, people who buy cigarettes and liquor choose to pay a Pigovain (Sin) tax.
What about gaming revenue as a source of money for government? Another form of voluntary tax, that I personally do not pay, but others choose to pay.
There are many other types of taxes and sources of revenue (money) for government JB. Maybe one day you will do some research, and look up taxes on imported goods and services, which are another source of government revenue that we do not necessarily pay, unless the international companies try to pass that cost on to consumers by raising prices,
Quit smokin’, quit drinking so much, quit buying those darn lottery tickets and cut down yer driving then sit back and watch your governments get in a panic. But that will probably happen when the Pope gets married. In other words, it ain’t gonna happen, folks.
Thanks for making my point, People. Maybe one day you will come to the realization that we can’t make every charitable organization happy. They are all not sustainable.
Charities are a big business, and unfortunately, many of them are run so that funds donated don’t actually get to the people they need to.
Government operates programs and raise funds to support the operation of those programs.
So, has anyone ever looked at the cost of hiring people who do that work of “fund raising” and operating the programs?
So, why should charities be any different? People who operate the programs and raise funds ought to get paid. If they do not, then they are cheating the governments and the people by not being able to participate in raising funds for the government. In fact, in many cased a government may actually participate in raising funds for the charities by adding a percentage from as much as matching to, say, 10% or so.
It is all integrated when one takes a closer look.
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