2011

2011 was a milestone year for Wheels 4 Life. Thanks to so many fundraisers and individual donations we were able to provide over twice as many bikes to people in great need than in 2010. Donations were up and by the end of the year we had a total of 1201 bikes distributed.

I cannot deny that this is very exciting for us and extremely rewarding when we can see so many positive direct results thanks to the work we are doing together. We received so many heartfelt letters of thanks and reports from every single project listing the names with photos of the people with their new bikes. To hear from school children, medical workers and people trying to earn an income to support their families, to read of their joy at having their own transportation is so gratifying. To know that we are making headway, getting stronger, growing and the number of bikes we can give is escalating is so inspiring to us to keep at it, to do more, change even more lives.

Times are tough and there are so many very worthy charities out there so we feel honored when you choose to support ours and what we do. We are truly grateful for every donation that comes in and it is so rewarding when someone makes a further donation and continues to believe in us and help us get bikes out there into developing countries.

There is a lot of work to be done, a lot of lives that could be improved and saved with a bicycle. Such a simple mode of transport, but such an effective one! Don’t under estimate the power of two wheels powered by a person and not an engine. A bicycle is life altering for so many.

Throughout the year I have been updating our home page with news of different fundraisers that have been held all around the world. This month I would like to give thanks to Sambazon for making it possible for us to support a whole community with bikes. Crank Brothers in Laguna Beach who again hosted our Wheels 4 Life Christmas fundraiser, they all worked tirelessly to help us put on a great event. Despite the rain, it was fun and a success and thanks to the many that supported us we able to fund 120 bikes in Uganda. Thanks go to all the people that donated prizes and food and drinks on the night, La Sirena Grill, Sambazon, Go Pro, Rage Against the Machine, Quality Bicycle products, Ibis, Crank Brothers, Caduceus Medical Group and our many volunteers.

My dream for 2012 is that Wheels 4 Life will continue to grow and do more. I certainly have a whole lot of very deserving applications in my system and it is always so hard to decide who will receive funding for bicycles and who will not. Every application is thoroughly vetted and researched, the process takes months. The result though, is that I can be sure that the people that get the bikes really need the bikes and along the way we also form a relationship with the communities getting to know them even if only electronically.

We thank every all of you that has supported us and helped us thus far. We can’t do this without you. Please tell your friends and families about us and our what we are trying to do.

Remember, if you are thinking of a new mountain bike, check out the Dreambikes auction on ebay. A different bike each week, custom built with a top of the range specification. All proceeds from the auction go to Wheels 4 Life which means that the person with the winning bid will not just be buying 1 bike for pleasure but many more bikes for the good of others.  

                                               Thanks for reading and a very happy 2012 to you Carmen Rey