Change a Life
Thank You! Mayor(s), Councillors, volunteers and all riders
We were thrilled with the enthusiasm and participation in this year’s Durham Waterfront Community “Ride With the Mayor(s)”. Fortunately the anticipated (and called for) rain did not appear, and we were able to enjoy the courses and the support of all of the volunteers on dry pavement and without resorting to rain gear! It was great to see the support of our local Mayors and Councillors who joined us. Our host Mayor John Henry did a great job and is a strong advocate and supporter of our community and we are grateful for all of his efforts in aid of the United Way locally. We were especially pleased to see Steve Parish of Ajax and Adrian Foster from Clarington. They are both friends of the United Way and obviously friends of cycling in Durham. Councillors Ron Hooper, Amy England, Roger Bouma and Joanne Dies all joined us as well, and were very enjoyable to ride with and contributed wonderfully to the event. We thank them all.
We would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude to all of our volunteers. Our group leaders did an excellent job of helping the riders navigate the course safely and enjoyably, and we thank the Oshawa Cycling Club (OCC) and their volunteers on the day, and as well the Beech St. Spinners from the Clarington Older Adults Centre. This latter group was put together for us by Jim and Mary Boate and included: Frank and Cisca Van Hoof, Betty MacDonald and Tim Hanson. Melissa Claxton-Oldfield and her husband Richard were instrumental in the planning of the event with us, and they provided many volunteer ride leaders from the OCC. They all did a wonderful job.
Support on the course was provided by our volunteers from CUPE local 250 and staff from the Oshawa Centre who volunteered their time for the day. They did a great job of supporting the riders. Their on course enthusiasm and support of the riders was greatly appreciated by all. Both groups and organizations are longstanding friends of the United Way in this community and it is super that they are participating and helping as we execute our cycling initiatives.
Planning has already begun for the 2013 version of the Durham Waterfront Ride the Mayor(s), and we look forward to a bigger and more expansive event next year and in the future.