A team of fundraisers bicycling across Canada from the Arctic to the Atlantic will be arriving in Kamloops on Friday, Aug. 13.
The 65-day ride across Canada, called Cycling 4 Water, is being undertaken by four cyclists travelling to Halifax from Tuktoyatuk, N.W.T., where they started their journey in late July.
Rob Montgomery, Timo Itkonen, Gabe McReynolds and Mike Woodward, who hail from cities across Canada, are embarking on the tour as an opportunity to raise awareness of and funds for 65 water wells in Africa, in partnership with Global Aid Network (GAiN).
The team is expected to make it to Kamloops on Friday at about 6 p.m.
The group has travelled 2,393 kilometres of a 9,974 km journey. So far, participants have raised $180,065 in donations and have funds or pledges to cover 33 of 65 wells, according to the Cycling 4 Water website.
GAiN is a worldwide humanitarian relief and development organization and its Water for Life Initiative has already provided 2,399 water wells, giving 2,399,000 villagers access to safe water.
An estimated 785-million people on the planet do not have access to clean water, according to a press release from Cycling 4 Water.
“Access to clean water changes everything — especially for young girls and women,” the release states. “By providing accessible, disease-free water points, there is an increase in girls’ attendance in school, a drastic reduction in malnutrition and sickness, an improvement in maternal and newborn health, more time for women to focus on the well-being of their families and communities, an improvement in the local economy, an understanding of God’s unconditional love, leaders trained and new churches planted,” the release went on to state.
According to the Cycling 4 Water website, the team will stop in Kamloops for the night before setting off for Vernon, but will not be hosting a speaking event in the Tournament Capital.
