The 2021 Cops for Kids Ride arrived in Castlegar on Sunday with twenty-seven riders and support people from RCMP and supporting enforcement agencies within the South East District.
Volunteers from the ladies auxiliary at the Castlegar Robson Legion sent the team off with a breakfast Monday morning before they headed to their next stop in Nelson.
The 2021 ride, presented by the Impact Tomorrow Foundation, departed Kelowna on Sept. 10 and takes the team across the southeast corner of British Columbia over 10 days to raise funds for children in medical, physical, or traumatic crisis in the region.
Representing Castlegar again this year is Cst. Ron George.
“It’s an incredibly rewarding journey each year,” says George. “Cycling together with like-minded colleagues, knowing that our efforts will ease the burden from a family in crisis keeps us motivated, particularly on those steep hills.”
After a modified format in 2020, the team is excited to be reunited to cycle as a group across the region this year. In order to keep the team and the communities safe, they’ll be travelling in a bubble and won’t be hosting community landings in each community like in past years.
“Last year was incredibly hard on our team, covering 1,000 km on their own from home. While we wish we could host large gatherings in each community, at least we’re travelling together this year and staying safe,” commends ride captain, Julio Krenz. “We’ve worked hard to make sure that we’ve found a way to safely execute our ride this year, and the team is extremely excited.”
Funds from the event support ongoing requests from families who require financial assistance to travel to medical care outside their home community, emergency dental treatment, medical supplies, learning tools and mobility aids. Since 2001, the foundation has raised over $5.8 million for local children who need it most.
To follow the team along their journey or to make a donation visit copsforkids.org or follow along on Facebook and Instagram.