Ride for Refugees - News

21 seconds - the best youtube video you'll watch tonight!

Fri, 25 Sep 2009 21:40:00 -0400

Sept 25 - I don't know who this great kid is but I'm proud of her. She made her pitch, she made it with conviction and she invited me to give AND to ride with her on October 3rd. Click here now to watch this 21 seconds of one kid making her stand for refugees. For even more fun, click her brother's appeal here.

See, its not hard!

The RIDE is all over the internet!

Tue, 22 Sep 2009 18:22:00 -0400

The RIDE can be found in the news, on blogs, twittered and twitted, facebooked and linked a 100 different ways.

Here are some quick links that prove how wide the LOVE is growing.

http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=323319&src=3

http://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/index.ssf/2009/09/grand_rapids_family_avoid_empt.html

http://www.momentumplanet.com/news/ride-refugees-comes-vancouver-area

http://www.ottawagreens.ca/ottawacentre/index.php/2009/09/22/ride-for-refugees/352

http://www.cpj.ca/en/blog/rebekah/ride-refugees-gear-your-bikes-october-3rd

http://lovingtheoverlooked.com/2009/08/24/ride-for-refugees/

http://community.wr.org/Page.aspx?pid=2074

http://www.haroldalbrechtmp.ca/myCalendar.aspx?pID=535

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 08:17:00 -0400

June 25 - Ottawa, Canada - The RIDE is proud to be bringing the Ride for Refugees to Ottawa this October. But it is all happening through the concerted effort of the Matthew 25:35 Network and their expanding team of churches, business and volunteers who are serving 100's of refugees through their work.

Last night, June 24, they celebrated their first year of service together - read the following email to share in the momentum that is,... Matthew 25:35 Network

Good Morning Friends,

Wow! That's is about all I can say to shin dig that Eglise Evangelique Baptiste d'Ottawa put on last night for the Matthew 2535 Network's First Year Anniversary.

It was an amazing evening to which we are very grateful to Sister Esther Narcisse and her hospitality team. Merci Ma Soeur!

Refugee children sang, danced and shared their stories of fleeing persecution. Adults told powerful stories of getting out of Haiti with their lives and having to leave everything they owned in the US. They went on say how God brought them straight into the welcoming arms and blessings of the network. Pastor Benito Bastien, Champion of the Refugee, gave unbelievable accounts of the types of help and numbers of people who have helped get on their feet here in the National Capital City. Hundreds and hundreds have received council, shelter, furnishings, jobs, orientation, warm clothing, community and on and on. It is wonderful to see just what can happen when people work together and in the same direction.

There were balloons and gifts and words of praise and appreciation shared by all and to all that have been a part of the growing cooperation and shared efforts of local churches, business and helping organizations here in Ottawa. And afterward the church put on a spread fit for Kings and Queens. Oh, how happy and proud were we all at the goodness and cooperation and grace God has poured out on us all.

For those of you unable to attend last night, the church will be sending you a little something to say thank you for your hard work and support.

...and the King will say, when you did these things for the least of these, the marginalized and neglected, it was me, you did it for me...

Year One - Check!

Year Two...

Have you visited http://www.rideforrefugees.com/ yet? Every mile matters!

La Paix,

Marc Wyatt

http://www.matthew2535network.com/

Health Partners International supports 1500 Hatians through 2008 RIDE Partner Grant

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:15:00 -0400

June 22 - In a recent report to the Ride for Refugees, Health Partner International detailed the impact of their RIDE Partner Grant from 2008.

HPIC gratefully recognizes the contribution of the RIDE for Refugees to our work of providing
medicine to people in the developing world who would otherwise have to do without. The RIDE
gift was used to provide medical aid to people living in extreme poverty in Haiti, many forced
from their homes by tropical storms.

Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere. The health care system is inadequate
and the people suffer needlessly from preventable and treatable diseases. In 2008, large
numbers of Haitians were displaced due to tropical storms and flooding, wiping out their
resources and leaving them even more vulnerable to hunger, disease and infection.

Caring Canadian medical professionals travel to Haiti every year to offer their time and skills to
provide healthcare to this needy population. HPIC provides medicine and medical supplies,
packed in Physician Travel Packs, to enable them to do their work effectively. In the months
following last year's devastation, 25 PTPs were carried to Haiti.
The PTP is a portable medical kit that enables the doctor to travel to isolated and remote areas
and treat people through mobile clinics.

Some 1,500 Haitians were treated with the medicine sent through the RIDE donation.

Ride Partner Grant Update

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 07:55:00 -0400

June 22 - Important: The Ride Partner Grant system will be open by weeks end. Please note that the deadline for organizations making application for the October RIDE is September 15th, 2009.

The new system is a much more robust version of the 2008 model allowing a more streamlined application process for both applying organizations and, for teams selecting the RPG organizations they will be riding for.

World Refugee Day Reflection

Sat, 20 Jun 2009 05:34:00 -0400

June 21 - World Refugee Day is a 24 hour pause to consider the 'refugee' in our world. Perhaps more precisely, for me to consider the 'refugees' in my world. But would we know who they are?

This week I was couriering a banner to Grand Rapids and stepped out of my car near a local eatery. When I got out of my car an obviously African, early-twenties man greeted me by name. I did not recognize him until he connected me with his cousin, Enoch. His name was Jackson. It also happened that Jackson worked at the same restaurant as my son. When I got home I asked Nic if he knew Jackson and he said something vague like, "Oh yeah, some of the staff said he wasn't Canadian". "Wasn't Canadian?", I retorted? "Do you have any idea what that kid has gone through?" I asked. Nope. Not a clue.

I can't blame my son for not knowing the family history of every staff member at his place of employment. But I wish he did know Jackson. I wish the staff knew what this kid endured in the Congo. I wish the manager there could appreciate how personally connected Jackson is to the machette he's using to cut up tomatoes and onions.

World Refugee Day - if it helps any of us get to know our own Jackson or Enoch or Victoria or Selema - that would be well worth the effort. Who are you going to get to know today?

Refugees & Torture

Tue, 19 May 2009 22:43:00 -0400

May 19 - "I am a victim of torture, harassment, detention and maiming by officials of [my] state. I am denied the rights to education, research, branded a spy, refused the freedom of association, peaceful demonstration, opinion and self determination," so wrote 30-year-old Cameroonian, Edwin, shortly after his arrival in the UK. (as quoted on the website, Torturecare)

Torturecare is a UK charity I've only bumped into on the web. Can't speak for its ethics, policies or programs that is provides or features but if its data is accurate (as well as other checked sources), then the connection between torture and refugees is painfully clear.

The organization has worked with over 45,000 referrals to their post-torture counseling services. 99% of those referred are refugees. Of the 2000 reported cases in the recent year over 50% of those originated from the Congo.

Type 'refugee torture' into Google and a long string of links opens up all pointing to the stark reality that on top of the pain inflicted by exile, refugees are often exposed to the physical and mental abuse of torture, the most common of which is rape. This points to the blatant vulnerability of refugees, especially women and children. It points to the need for receiving countries to be equipped and ready to deal with the post-trauma counseling required.

I spoke in the early winter with our Event Director for the Halifax RIDE, Tina. She told me a story that I can neither ignore nor forget. She told me that recent women refugees arriving in Halifax from East Africa arrived to her fair city still 'bloated from the physical assaults' they endured in Sudan. No further description is required - I think we get the gruesome picture.

Brian Carney
Ride Chair

Vancouver Team Meet RIDE Chair Online!

Sat, 16 May 2009 07:33:00 -0400

May 16 - Some friends that I know argue quite often with me, (expressing perhaps an expanding sentiment in our world), that technology is impersonal, dehumanizing and uninspiring. Just a pretty box of widgets and gadgets that make a bright flat screen do cool things - or something to that affect.

Well fair enough. I've spent enough hours chained to my precious MACBOOK to know how accurate that opinion might be. But this week my friends, I saw and experienced first hand how terrible technology can bring people together terrifically (forgive me that illiteration). Two experiences highlighted this for me - both so simple to be laughable but still, very meaningful.

This first was at Wednesday lunch. The RIDE's Development Director, Mika Takamaki (tack-ah-ma-key :), was on a wild three day jaunt out west visiting the lower British Columbia mainland meeting with pastors and community leaders about the new Vancouver RIDE. One of our favourite haunts is Boston Pizza. We like the food, service and the excellent wireless too. At the end of lunch Mika called me on Goodle Videochat and personally introduced me to James and Hans, the co-directors of the new event. It was great, I could hear and see the busy lunch hour of servers and patrons enjoying their Tuscan Pizza's and at the same time I got the chance to meet our leaders ummm, well, 'face to face'.

The second happened Thursday night. Mika was again meeting with a team of 16 volunteer leaders in Vancouver and at 10:30am EST he conferenced me in . He slowly turned his MAC around the room so I could meet those in attendence and then because the wireless wasn't so great we reconnected on voicechat and proceeded to have a 30 minute review of the RIDE guide.

It worked flawlessly. The sound was perfect. It felt like I was there. I was laughing at at their jokes and they were laughing politely at mine. I was able to get my instructions accross acurately and the Q&A at the end was hosted well by James and team.

I hung up from that engagement shaking my head - amazed at how great the technology worked but especially surprised at how well it allowed me to connect with my new friends there.

Brian (from my sofa in my living room, coffee in hand, saturday morning)