Next Bicycle Distribution Trip set for January 2014 – Open
to All Rotarians and Their Friends. Contact: rotarywheelsforlearning@gmail.com
A team of 20 Rotarians and Friends from Gravenhurst,
Sudbury, Minden and Toronto have just completed their three-week mission of
distributing an astounding 1,231 bicycles to rural children across Cambodia.
This massive distribution was conducted under the
Gravenhurst Rotary Club’s international program ‘Rotary Wheels for Learning’.
Rotarian Lisa McCoy coordinated the project on-the-ground in Cambodia with the
help of the local Battambang Rotary Club and volunteers from Banyan Learning
Tree organization.
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| 2013 Rotary Wheels for Learning Team in Cambodia |
Our team was comprised of Gravenhurst area residents Jim
& Marlyn Goodwin, George & Liz Rice, Lisa McCoy, Sharon Foley, Lynda
Valcourt, Steve and Janice Hayhurst and Richard Augustine. Area cottagers Kathy
and Clare Glazer-Chow joined our team along with Minden Rotarian Bill Obee and
Sudbury Sunrisers Rotarians Darlene Palmer and Debra Betty who brought along
five students from Cambrian College in Sudbury.
Last January, a team of Gravenhurst and Bracebridge
Rotarians and Friends undertook a similar mission, distributing, 1,097
bicycles.
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| Gravenhurst Rotarian Jim Goodwin Presents a Bike to a Student |
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| Teaching Dental Hygiene |
Our team distributed the bikes at 12 locations in several
provinces throughout rural Cambodia.
The bikes were purchased locally and then shipped by trucks
to our distribution locations. Our team’s job was to affix the baskets, bells,
pedals to each bicycle as they came off the trucks. We also did some repairs
plus a lot of tire-pumping by hand! We were always provided a helping hand from
local people and of course, the children.
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| Our Team attends a Bicycle Distribution Ceremony at Prokeab Village |
The ceremonies also included a special dental hygiene
education session sponsored by our program and taught by a Cambodian dentist.
Our team members got really involved in these sessions – by actually brushing
our teeth in front of the students. After these sessions, our team distributed
the dental supplies.
Our team traveled around the country by bus, giving us many
opportunities to mingle with the locals and gain insight into the country’s
unique culture and history. We also visited the famed ancient temples of Angor
Wat plus Phnom Penh’s sites including the Royal Palace, the Killing Fields and
Tuol Sleng Genocide museum.
The team also personally met two CNN Top Ten Heroes who have
made a big difference to the lives of many in this developing country. We
distributed 100 bikes to children living surrounding Phnom Penh’s garbage dump.
The school and orphanage there is run by People Improvement Organization
founded by 2008 CNN top Ten Hero Phymean Noun.
In Siem Reap, our team met with Aki Ra – the Cambodian
de-miner who has made it his life mission to ‘Make My Country Safe for Its
People’. Aki Ra works daily in the remote minefields of Cambodia where an
estimated five million landmines still plague the countryside. For his
dedication, he was awarded a 2010 CNN Top Ten Hero Award. At our visit to his
landmine museum and orphanage, he was awarded with a Paul Harris Fellow by our
Rotary Club of Gravenhurst.
It truly was a rewarding experience – hours of hard, hot
work were soon forgotten when we were rewarded with the smiles from the
Cambodian children as they received their first bike.
Photos of our 2013 trip can be found at https://picasaweb.google.com/rotarywheelsforlearning/
See RotaryWheels4L on You Tube for videos.
For more information on Rotary Wheels
for Learning and how you can contribute towards bikes for
Cambodian children – or join our next Bicycle
Distribution trip to Cambodia scheduled for January 2014. Contact Lisa McCoy
at: rotarywheelsforlearning@gmail.com
Rotary Wheels for Learning is an international program of the Rotary Club Of Gravenhurst.
Public on the web (
