$250.00

Hello friends!

I am fundraising for participating in the “Friends For Life” bicycle rally from Toronto to Montreal.   This is an annual event attracting hundreds of cyclists for a 6 day 600 km bike ride.  Participants are raising funds for charity, PWA, which stands for “People with AIDS” in Toronto and similar charities in Kingston and Montreal.  The first rally was organized by a group of brave volunteers and helped them to save the charity from going out of business 26 years ago.  The rally has been a success ever since, it has gained popularity and is repeated every August.  

The World has changed since 1990s, when the first rally took place.  Humanity made significant advances in treatment and prevention of HIV and in human rights with acceptance of all people in the society.  HIV is much less of a problem today.  Nevertheless, the fear of the virus and the lack of knowledge are still fueling the stigma and discrimination of people affected by it.  The bike rally and PWA are not only fighting the stigma but also help vulnerable people affected by HIV to address current challenges, such as the quickly raising food and shelter prices.  A small donation might help someone to have a meal and to have one less worry for a day.  Any one of us usually can’t change the World drastically, but every one of us can make a little difference in someone’s life and if we all do that, we will find ourselves in a better World. 

For me personally, the bike rally is an amazing opportunity to have a break from long days in office, to participate in community events, to give back, to make those little changes in someone’s live.  As someone who grew up in a different part of the World this is also an opportunity for me to learn about Canada, the country where I live and grow to love more and more every year; an opportunity to socialize and meet people.  This year is the second time I am going to Montreal by bike.  From my experience last year, the rally brings up the best in every participant and has a very positive message.  If you have time and opportunity, consider joining next year.

When I tell someone about the ride to Montreal, people usually have questions about the difficulty of riding the bike for many hours for several days in a row.  But the most difficult part for me was not the riding, it was asking for donations.  Fundraising is an activity outside of my comfort zone, I haven’t done much of it before.  I’d say, everyone can climb those hills between Toronto and Port Hope, but I am still figuring out the effective ways for raising donations. 

If you have an opportunity to donate, if you find this to be a good cause, please donate to PWA any amount you can, which hopefully makes someone’s day easier, and sends me biking to Montreal.  Also note that these are charitable donations that you will be able to claim on your Canadian tax return, you will receive the official receipt immediately to your email. 

Click “Donate” if you are.

Thank you for your time and have a great day,

Ivan.