“Good Morning, God…..What Can I Do For You, Today….?”

By Sid Chadwick

“Good Morning, God…..What Can I Do For You, Today….?”…Earl Barber, at a Kairos Weekend Retreat

INTRODUCTION:

I believe there are “Profound …Movements”….being developed….by caring, committed individuals…..who increasingly….with the test of time…..also appear……very smart….!

bike Recently, on April 28th, 2018, a group of about 1,100 Mountain Bikers…..assembled at Rancho Santa Margarita --- at the Applied Medical headquarters (formerly Cox Communications building), in Orange County, CA….for their annual…. Project Rwanda Ride…...

At the end of the Mountain Biking Day…….year after year….with growing numbers of returning participants….is one BIG…legendary…post-ride party….including music…..“food court”….. “beer garden”….”vendor expo….and over….$30,000 in Prizes…. to be given away (minimum prize packages….are valued at $250…with a grand prize Bike….. valued at over $8,500….!) (“It now requires over 200 volunteers to pull off this event…!)

That first year…”…there were 238 riders…. and over $28,000….was raised…..”

This year….with 1,100 riders……over $130,000 was raised….. for mountain bikes…for Project Rwanda….a non-profit founded by mountain bike legend and pioneer, Tom Richey.

This was their 12th Annual Rwanda Ride. (Over these 12 years, over $1,100,000…..has been raised…..!)

This raising money for Rwanda villagers, and particularly Rwanda’s half-million coffee growers --- living in poverty…of about $300 a year income… got started when Doug Grant, CEO of WestAmerica Communications…. decided to celebrate his 50th birthday --- with an “epic mountain fund-raising ride”.

As Doug shared… “...50 miles on a mountain bike…. definitely fits the ‘epic’ category.”

Mountain Bikes….support village children getting an education (many walk for over an hour, each way, each day)…. needed medical care,…. and farmers getting their produce and crops --- to market.

In effect, the culture…and economic well-being…. of a whole country…. are being raised.

Note: To date, this event has funded over 1,600 uniquely designed utility bikes for Africa, and “provides 1/3 of the operating budget for Team Rwanda…Rwanda’s National Cycling Team…”

Doug has made two trips to Rwanda: “I wanted to see the impact of our cargo bikes first-hand, so I went to Rwanda the first time in the fall of 2007…I returned in 2015…. the progress was amazing…the improvement in main roads…and development in larger cities….touring by bike is a slower and more intimate experience….I was riding mostly with pro cyclists….children in the villages would know I was coming…would run out to meet me, shouting ‘Muzungu’ --- which means ‘white person’….I felt like a Tour de France cyclist arriving in town with a stream of raving fans running alongside…”

SUMMARY:

There are unlimited opportunities for organizations in our great industry….. to make a profound difference…while providing customers….. with substantive reasons to prefer to do business…….with them.

I believe it is not by chance that Doug Grant’s WestAmerica Communications…..has grown….over 300%....... over the last few years. Caring…and acting….. to “make a difference”…while making prudent, committed decisions…..that improve the company’s foundations and performance……are parts of an unfinished story..…that’s unfolding.

Included in WestAmerica’s 300+% growth curve….is my observation that major (and minor) organizations….in their neighborhood of Southern California…. have stepped-up….and I believe have said….partly by their actions, “….WestAmerica Communications is the type of supplier we want….as part of our organization…..we can learn important things from them……”

I’ll never forget the Customer Survey respondent’s volunteered comment, provided to our client…… who had a local reputation of passionately supporting non-profits:

“Anything we can do to support your organization, we want to know about.”……Volunteered Written Customer Comment to Customer Survey Sponsor

For more information, go to:

RwandaRide.com
Facebook: http.//www.facebook.com/FiftyMileRide
A donation of $189 will purchase a utility bike that will be provided to a student, healthcare worker, or entrepreneur as a “hand up”, not a “hand out”.