Inuvik Ride for Sight going strong
Malcolm Gorrill
Northern News Services
Inuvik (Feb 09/01) - Inuvik Ride for Sight is seeking new members as it prepares for its annual journey to Rock River, Yukon.
The group is one of 12 clubs across Canada. Each year they hold rides to raise funds for the Foundation Fighting Blindness, which is based in Ontario.
The Inuvik Ride for Sight has existed for about 16 years and has about 20 members. Last year's ride raised $16,200, the highest per capita amount in Canada for the second year in a row.
Secretary Jo Whiteside says the Inuvik chapter consists of a good group of people.
"There isn't any of them who doesn't go out and do something," Whiteside said.
"I've done volunteer work probably since I was 15 years of age, and I've never run into a group that's so together as this one."
This year's trip to Rock River, Yukon will take place June 8-10, with members taking pledges for a month or two beforehand.
Whiteside emphasized people don't need to own bikes to go, as there are always spare ones available. She said that many games and activities are held at Rock River.
"In Inuvik this ride is more of a family thing," she said.
Whiteside has been with the group since 1997. She got involved because both her parents have macular degeneration, in which a person's forward vision is cloudy.
Whiteside said members used to just meet in the months leading up to the ride, but that they now meet and raise funds all year long. For instance, members tend bar for parties and other occasions.
She said the club hopes to attract more members.
Last November Whiteside attended a national planning meeting in Toronto. There she met up with representatives from six other clubs.
"None of us had met each other before. We got into our meeting, and within a half an hour you'd have thought we were all old friends," Whiteside said.
"A lot of our suggestions from this group have been put into place already."
Whiteside attended the meeting with her husband, Mike, who is president of Inuvik Ride for Sight.
This will mark the 22nd year for Ride for Sight in Canada. The first Ride for Sight took place in Peterborough, Ontario in 1979. The ride became a national event by 1987.
