#GiveForward on #GivingTuesday

Arhcive Post from November 28th, 2016

​On November 29th, Trips for Kids is excited to join #GivingTuesday - a global day of charitable giving celebrated each year on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving. We invite you to start the Giving Season with a charitable donation to Trips for Kids and help us make a difference in the lives of underserved children!
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In 1988, Trips for Kids had 5 riders. Since then, the program has grown from its humble beginnings into a global organization with more than 75 chapters across the United States and branches in Israel, Sierra Leone and Canada. In 2015 alone, Trips for Kids Marin served more than 2,000 children across our Trail Rides, Earn-a-Bike and Mobile Bike Workshop programs. Please see Trips for Kids' Annual Report 2015 for more information on the organization's history, lasting impact and future direction.

Thanks to your support and the generosity of our sponsors, volunteers and donors, Trips for Kids has impacted the lives of over 172,000 underserved youth. Over these last 28 years, 15,000 volunteers have contributed more than 250,000 hours of their time and our industry sponsors have donated more than $6 million. These gifts of time, advocacy and donor dollars take on real meaning in the form of trail rides, supplies and participant sponsorships.

The generosity of our supporters is what makes Trips for Kids possible; the stories from our youth participants inspire us to keep going. 

“Thank you so much for creating the opportunity for kids like me to be able to do something like mountain biking. Without you, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy this wonderful experience. Being able to do something like this has changed how I feel about the outdoors. Something I learned from this is that things are not as hard as they seem and sometimes you just have to go for it."

Twenty-eight years ago, our founder Marilyn Price made an incredible realization while riding on our beloved Mount Tamalpais: “There's nothing like biking up a mountain and looking behind you to see all you've accomplished.” This sentiment has been echoed over and over again through the stories and words of the youth who have had the opportunity to join the Trips for Kids movement. If they have taught us anything, it’s that life can look very different from the seat of a bike on the top of a mountain.
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Here at Trips for Kids, we are blessed to see firsthand the lasting impact one bike, one trail ride, one mountain and one great experience in nature can have on youth who would otherwise not have such opportunities. These are the kinds of wonderful gifts that keep on giving.

In the words of a few of our youth participants,

“On that trip you guys taught me how to ride a mountain bike, which was hard at first but then I got the hang of it. You guys helped me learn that if I push myself, I'll be able to accomplish what I want to do in life.”

“I learned to never give up, good things will happen if you keep trying. I learned that if I keep being strong, I will become stronger.”

If life gives you lemons, make lemonade; if life gives you a bike, the opportunities are endless.

Please join us Tuesday, November 29th in celebrating the tremendous power of generosity by supporting our ability to provide transformative cycling experiences for underserved youth. Even a small contribution from you on Tuesday will go a very long way - perhaps even to the top of a mountain. 

Happy Holidays and thank you for your support!
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With gratitude,
Trips for Kids Marin