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Local Guides
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Local Students Conquer Canada For AIDS
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by Lenna Titizian
August 3 - 9, 2006 |
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Imagine waking up in the morning and riding your bike
to work. If this is something you would not dream of
doing in the summer heat, or, if you do this daily, now
think about waking up in the morning and hopping on
your bike to travel 200km as you bike across Canada.
Sound like a lot? Now imagine that you’re living in rural
Africa, with AIDS, and unable to walk to the nearest
clinic. A bicycle could mean the difference between life
and death.
That last reason is why two Wilfrid Laurier Students,
Jason Shim and Kylie Hickenton, have decided to hop
on their bikes and travel across Canada. Their initiative
is to raise $50,000 for World University Services Canada
(WUSC), who will put the funds toward partnerships with
organizations in Malawi, Africa, purchasing bicycle
ambulances through the Uniterra Bike for AIDS program.
Shim and Hickenton began their journey at the end of
June, when they flew out to Vancouver to dip their bike
wheels into the Pacific Ocean. Since then, they have
travelled thousands of kilometers across five provinces,
and still have half of the country left to travel. Currently in
Northern Ontario, they expect to be hitting Toronto by
August 7–8. They return home to Waterloo in early
September.
“We spend about eight to ten hours on the road each
day,” says Shim. “The total journey is over 7,000km.” It’s
not just the length of the journey that’s difficult, he said,
but living on the road as well. “We bike through blistering
summer heat, rain, mosquitoes, and everything else. I’ve
grown weary of riding with my iPod on, because I like to
be more aware if a car is going to side–swipe me or not
since I’m taking up part of its lane.”
Dependent on the hospitality of others, Shim and
Hickenton have spent the night with other WUSC
delegates in various cities, supporters they’ve met online
or along the way, and various universities and colleges.
“Libraries have also recently become our ideal refuge
after a long day of cycling,” Shim emphasizes, “because
air conditioned and quiet, they are the perfect place to
check e–mail or to take a short nap.”
“At times it can be tough, but each day we remind
ourselves of one thing: we ride our bikes to raise money
so that others can ride bikes to save lives.” It’s a lofty
goal. In Sub–Saharan Africa, where bicycles are the
main mode of transportation in the predominantly rural
communities, they really are the difference between life
and death. “I am 23 years old,” Shim says, “and if I lived
in a rural village in Malawi, I could expect to live another
14 years. If I had a child, there is a one-in-four chance
that they would not live to see their fifth birthday.”
Through WUSC and Uniterra Bike for AIDS, $120 will
buy a bike and $380 will provide a bicycle ambulance.
“We’re just trying to make a difference,” said Shim.
Their hard work is paying off. Along the way, they’ve met
a number of willing sponsors and supporters. So far
they’ve raised nearly $2,000 of the $50,000 they hope to
eventually raise. To make a donation, or to find out more
about their adventure, visit their website at http://
www.bikeacrosscanada.ca.
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