$12,414 raised by 73 donors
41% complete
$30,000 Goal
Your donation brings freedom, meaningful connections and joy to lonely and isolated older adults and your neighbors with special needs by providing free wind in the hair experiences on a trishaw ride in Colorado's beautiful outdoors.
Mission: To be a positive force in the community bringing all walks of life together by providing an outdoor trishaw experience that positively benefits passengers physically, mentally, socially and psychologically. Our desire is to ensure the most vulnerable do not become the least visible and to help volunteers be the best versions of themselves through ridership, volunteerism, and community support.
Vocabulary: Trishaw: a unique, specially built, 3- wheeled electric assist bicycle with a padded sit-down bench in front of the bike, designed to accommodate the needs of passengers with mobility or stability challenges and everyone with special needs who is otherwise unable to ride a bicycle and feel “wind in their hair.” Pilot: Pilots are avid cyclists who propel the trishaw and keep passengers safe, but more importantly, provide conversation and companionship. Pilots match the energy of the passenger so if they want to sit quietly and take in the beautiful views, they can. Otherwise, they might share a memory, stop for coffee, take photographs or just smile and wave! The majority of our pilots are retired and also experience great joy in helping others.
Benefits: Our passengers experience joy and the feeling of freedom while they are outside on a trishaw, cognitive stimulation from engagement with physical surroundings (fresh air, sunshine and visual benefits of the outdoors), and cross-generational socialization from engaging in conversations with pilots, trail users, local business owners and others. Volunteer interaction with passengers has been shown to reduce anxiety, promote a sense of belonging, improve well-being, provide relaxation and bring joy to many! In addition, many riders feel a deep sense of pride when they can invite their adult children, grandchildren, etc. to enjoy such a unique event with them! For a generation consumed with time on digital devices, it is a thrill to surprise many generations with quality time and good company riding on the trishaw.
History and Impact: Cycling Without Age Littleton (CWAL), an all-volunteer nonprofit, was founded in 2019 and has grown significantly in just three short years. In the first year, 12 rides were given with three volunteers piloting one trishaw. We now have 5 trishaws, over 90 volunteers, and are on track to serve over 2,000 passengers by year end 2023. This growth speaks volumes to the benefits of getting our isolated older adults and everyone with special needs out in nature and wind in their hair.
Populations Served: CWAL serves older adults living at home and in assisted living communities who generally stay indoors and rely on walkers, wheelchairs, canes and other mobility support. The magic of the trishaw experience is that it allows passengers to share about their lives, about their childhood memories, and about what they enjoy and look forward to now. We also serve isolated people of any age with special needs.
A GENEROUS DONOR WILL MATCH YOUR DONATION NOV. 1-DEC. 5 FOR EVEN MORE "WIND IN THE HAIR EXPERIENCES"
WHY DO WE FUNDRAISE?
To keep our trishaws rolling and purchase new trishaws and accessories so we can bring the joy of wind in their hair to more people and outreach to additional populations of passengers traditionally isolated including the Blind Association, Children’s Hospital, Craig Hospital, and government organizations and agencies focused on Veterans and Aging. Additional populations include those affected by ALS, strokes, injuries, multiple sclerosis, arthritis and Parkinson’s disease. There are so many people CWAL can provide support to with the number of trishaws and capacity of our volunteers.
Trishaw $15,000
Batteries that power the trishaw: $1,000
Special sleigh blankets to keep our passengers warm and dry: $350
Replacement tires - needed quarterly: $300/bike
Hub: $250
Birthday/anniversary celebration supplies: $50 each; more than 70 held this year!
DONATE:
ONLINE:
Other Ways To Help: VOLUNTEER:
Volunteers provide the foundation on which Cycling Without Age Littleton is built. Currently a 100 percent volunteer organization, it provides a wide spectrum of opportunities for the community to participate in meaningful ways.
Schedule a Ride!
Contact: Jinny Netoles, Master Scheduler
Phone: 414-861-4877/Email: jbsnet50@gmail.com
CYCLING WITHOUT AGE LITTLETON
Mission: To be a positive force in the community bringing all walks of life together by providing an outdoor trishaw experience that positively benefits passengers physically, mentally, socially and psychologically. Our desire is to ensure the most vulnerable do not become the least visible and to help volunteers be the best versions of themselves through ridership, volunteerism, and community support.
Cycling Without Age Littleton (CWAL), an all-volunteer nonprofit, was founded in 2019 and has grown significantly in just three short years. In the first year, 12 rides were given with three volunteers piloting one trishaw. We now have 5 trishaws, over 90 volunteers, and are on track to serve over 2,000 passengers by year end 2023. This growth speaks volumes to the benefits of getting our isolated older adults and everyone with special needs out in nature and wind in their hair.
Every interaction with the people we serve is a chance to provide freedom and enjoyment from being outside and out of isolation, to receive cognitive stimulation from engagement with physical surroundings (fresh air, sunshine and visual benefits of the outdoors), and cross-generational socialization from engaging in conversations with pilots, trail users, local business owners and others.
Volunteer interaction with passengers has been shown to reduce anxiety, promote a sense of belonging, improve well-being, provide relaxation and bring joy to many! In addition, many riders who are grand or great-grandparent riders feel a deep sense of pride when they can invite their adult children, grandchildren, etc. to enjoy such a unique event with them! For a generation consumed with time on digital devices, it is a thrill to surprise many generations with quality time and good company riding on the trishaw.
Organization name
Cycling Without Age Littleton
2019
Tax id (EIN)
84-4830327
Category
Community Improvement & Capacity Building, Health Care, Military & Veterans Organizations, Recreation & Sports, Mental Health & Crisis Intervention
Organization Size
Small Organization
Address
9153 Rice AveJefferson County, CO, US
Arapahoe County, CO, US
Denver, CO, US
Douglas County, CO, US