May 20, 2009 (Ottawa, ON) — Bicycles for Humanity (B4H) will be conducting a bike collection at 5 locations across Ottawa on Saturday, May 30th, 2009. A 40ft shipping container packed with 350-400 donated bicycles will be shipped to Namibia, Africa to benefit two community-based groups in Rundu and Nkurenkuru. The bicycles will help improve access to healthcare, education, food, water and employment.

A bicycle, one of the simplest transport technologies, is affordable and can be maintained anywhere in the world with minimal tools and spare parts. Yet for the world’s poorest people, living on $1 per day, even bicycles are beyond their reach. Meanwhile, in the western world we discard thousands of bicycles each year. Simply put — unused bicycles in garages or basements can make an incredible difference to those in need of transportation – such bicycles represent a terrific opportunity to change the lives of those less fortunate.

B4H is looking for mountain bikes in working condition for adults and youths (20″+ wheels, or ages 10+). This year, the bikes will be delivered to rural communities, where there are no paved roads. As such, mountain bikes are most suitable for the terrain. Donations of bike tools, repair & patch kits, inner tubes, tires, helmets and gently used backpacks are also welcome. Donations to help with the transport costs of the bikes are appreciated. Please note that small children’s bikes, frames without wheels, and racing bikes with thin tires are not suitable for this project.

This year, five Ottawa Pontiac Buick GMC dealers have graciously offered their facilities as drop-off points for greater convenience to potential donors. “It gives us the opportunity to help out on this very worthwhile effort. It is truly a grassroots voluntary project which is changing the lives of some of the poorest people on this planet.” says John May of Jack May Pontiac Buick GMC.

Once the bike drive is over, Kemptville Truck Centre will significantly contribute to the initiative by donating their services and equipment to transport the bikes to the B4H warehouse facility generously provided by Carp Self Storage. The bikes will be prepared for transport and loaded into the container at the end of June.

On Saturday, May 30th, between 9am-12pm, donors are asked to bring their bikes to one of the following locations

– Kanata: Turpin Pontiac Buick GMC, 200-2500 Palladium Drive
– Barrhaven: Jack May Pontiac Buick GMC, 3788 Prince of Wales Drive
– Ottawa: Surgenor Pontiac Buick GMC, 939 St. Laurent Blvd
– Ottawa South: Donnelly Pontiac Buick GMC, 2492 Bank Street
– Orleans: Marcel Belanger Pontiac Buick GMC, 1452 Youville Drive

B4H is grateful for the enthusiastic support from the many individuals and organizations who have donated funds, goods, facilities and services and to the volunteers who have given their time and energy towards this initiative.

About Bicycles for Humanity: Bicycles for Humanity (B4H) is a grass-roots initiative which aims to empower disadvantaged communities in developing countries through the provision of sustainable transportation. We send used bikes to improve access to healthcare, education, food, water, and employment. Entirely volunteer run – 100% of all donations go directly toward the transportation costs of the bikes, spare parts and tools. For more information, visit www.bicycles-for-humanity.org/ottawa, email Ottawa@bicycles-for-humanity.org or call (613) 799-7985.

October 10, 2006 – Bicycles for Humanity, Ridgeview Elementary School, and Rockridge Secondary School, are excited to announce a novel partnership to collect unwanted and unused bicycles in West Vancouver on November 3rd (3pm-7pm) & 4th (8 am – 4 pm).

Taking place on the grounds of West Vancouver’s centrally located Ridgeview Elementary School, students, parents and community members are invited to donate their bicycles which will be loaded onto a 40 foot container and shipped directly to the TOV Orphanage and community centre, 400 km North of Windhoek, Namibia. Like the majority of orphanages in Namibia, TOV is peopled by kids that have been orphaned by the HIV/AIDS pandemic that is raging across the subcontinent. Teachers are using the event as a teaching aid to link school goers from continent to continent around issues of access to education, transportation, health and HIV/AIDS. Innovative student/teacher fundraising initiatives and classes are planned.
Thousands of bicycles are discarded in the Lower Mainland every year
and Bicycles for Humanity links donators of bikes to communities and
organizations in Africa that are in dire need of affordable, reliable
transportation. Under the Bicycles for Humanity model, the steel
shipping container will remain in the community and become a Bicycle
Empowerment Centre enabling the creation of a self contained bike
shop where young people and women in particular can gain access to
transportation – an extremely urgent requirement for school kids in
rural areas, care givers, health workers and women who do the lions
share of water collection, firewood gathering and bringing goods to
market.
Through our partners in Namibia, local people are trained in bike
mechanics and the Bicycle Empowerment Centre will become a source of
employment and revenue within the community.

All working bikes for people aged 12 and over are accepted. A major
challenge for us is funding the shipment of bikes. Around 400 bikes
fit in a container with each bike costing around $20 to ship. Cash
donations will also be accepted, tax receipts will be issued and
unique cards and artwork will be available for sale to offset the
cost of shipping. Every $20 donated receives 12 Bicycles for Humanity
greeting cards and a poster. A $100 donation earns cards, a poster
and a beautiful limited edition print.

For more information, contact:

Philip Burgess: philipbee@gmail.com,
(604) 872 2424, (604) 731-6666,
Scott Slater: sslater@sd45.bc.ca,
Ridgeview Elementary School. (778) 688-2449
Tom Harding: tharding@sd45.bc.ca,
Rockridge Secondary School.