Since my story is going to be covered on WTHI tomorrow, I’m writing a brief post to explain what this journey is all about, what Ryves Youth Center does to help kids, and how you can help.
I started volunteering with Ryves in January 2008 when I was a nursing student at Indiana State University. I mostly stuck to volunteering with the preschool, but years later when I was unable to help at the preschool during the day, I helped out some evening at the after school program hosted by Ryves, including running their bicycle program for awhile.
Some preschoolers would tell me about a father in jail, or a mother in jail. One little girl, as I was pushing her in the swing, told me about a fight between her parents. Many of them had no father in their lives. Some of them had suffered sexual abuse in the past. Acting out behaviors were common as the kids struggled to make sense of the trauma they’d experienced in life. But we all know that living in poverty does not equal moral failure, and the parents of many of these children were struggling to offer the very best for them. The preschool was a safe haven 5 days a week for these children who didn’t have much stability in their lives and who were near homeless with unstable living situations. The kids in the after school program faced similar problems, but Ryves Youth Center’s afterschool program gave them a safe place to go after school when they’d otherwise be out on the street. When I ran the bicycle program at Ryves, I fixed bicycles the kids brought in and fixed up old bicycles so that we could give them to the kids, and many of the kids unfortunately had their bikes stolen due to living in high crime neighborhoods.
Ryves falls under the umbrella of Catholic Charities in Terre Haute, but no child is ever excluded because of religious beliefs or forced to attend catechism or any other religious services. There is a background check and abuse awareness training for every employee and volunteer (evening one-time volunteers) to help ensure that children are safe from abuse while they are at Ryves.
I’m riding across America first and foremost because I love cycling and I think it’s a wonderful way to travel. I’ve wanted to make this trip for over a decade, and now that I have a job as a teacher I finally have the free time in the summer to do it. However, I don’t have any official sponsors for my trip (nor am I asking for any). With a few exceptions, all of the food costs, camping costs, bicycle repair costs, etc have been borne by me. What I’m asking for is not for you to support me, but to donate directly to Ryves Youth Center using the link below. I have no direct affiliation with Ryves anymore and receive nothing when you donate.
So far I’ve travelled across a lot of unforgiving terrain, from the steep climbs of the Sonoma and Napa valleys in California, to the even steeper and longer climbs of the Sierra Nevada in Eastern California, to the sparse deserts of US 50, AKA “The Lonelinest Road in America” across The Great Basin territory of Nevada and western Utah (60-112 miles between towns in some places!), and the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. One thing I reflected on during the journey was that the infrastructure and facilities there weren’t really made for cyclists—they were made for people traveling by car or by RV. I’m not saying that to lionize myself, as I obviously had plenty of amenities along the way. But I’m pointing this out by way of empathy: There were some long rides I had to take on “the Loneliest Road” with no way to get water for another 60-83 miles in some places—that’s only 60-90 minutes of riding in a car, but many hours of cycling. It was hard for me, but I’m not a self-made man. I could not have made it this far without a lot of help from a lot of people who showed me kindness along the way. Similarly, at risk children in Terre Haute who depend on Ryves often live in a world that is not made for them.If there’s no food in the fridge after school, nobody is magically dropping in to fill it up. No one in the whole world can replace that mother or father who’s in jail, as much as other family members might try to step in. It’s difficult for many of them to ever get into college. While their parents are working hard just to keep a roof over their heads, there’s often no one looking out for the kids, so they have to look out for themselves in a world that is often indifferent to their survival. When you donate to Ryves Youth Center, you are helping these kids have a safe place to go after school (or during the summer afternoons) to do homework, get some fresh food, and play with other kids and a safe and nurturing environment. You can help them to do what they and their families simply cannot do by their own elbow grease. All the services at Ryves are free, to ensure that no child is ever excluded from services because of poverty.
Click on the following link, and from the dropdown menu, you can choose either “Ryves Youth Center” or “Ryves Preschool.” Both are worthy causes that I can vouch for. https://ccthin.org/donate
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