On August 18, my 12-year-old son Isaac and I set out on a six day ride across Quebec to Campbellton,...

1. Isaac's Ride
On August 18, my 12-year-old son Isaac and I set out on a six day ride across Quebec to
Campbellton, New Brunswick. We cycled to raise $50,000 to put towards a new, affordable and
supported housing project in East Hamilton being constructed by the charity Indwell.
We contacted CBC about what we were doing and were accepted into the 'Own Summer' project. We
now had the opportunity to document the cause, our preparation and the ride. Isaac and I
interviewed several people who had been homeless and had become stably housed through Indwell.
This experience was amazing. The interviews really put things into perspective. In particular, Isaac
commented on the interview with Gord, who seemed so happy with so little. Gord had shared how he
had a family, business, large house and how he lost everything because of alcohol.
However, Gord expressed his appreciation for a homeless shelter even though it had 150 people
sleeping on mats in one room. Gord also expressed delight in his current apartment which he
described as "spacious," even though it's only slightly larger than Isaac's bedroom.
The conversations and learning for both of us continued. Through the eyes of a 12-year-old, I
realized that we don't have to accept homelessness as a fact of life. We can construct a new story in
Canada.
May, June and July were preparation months, Isaac and I got to spend time riding together. It was a
deep privilege to be able to spend hours with my son at such a critical age. We faced the edges of
our abilities and had to struggle through challenges of ice, wind, traffic and hills. We learned to
work together and got to know each other and ourselves more deeply.

2. The actual ride started in Montreal where we joined a group called "Love in Motion". The group was
cycling from Vancouver to Halifax to raise money for inner city organizations who work with the
poor and marginalized.
"Love in Motion" took care of the logistics of campsites, food, route and hauled our gear. We had to
ride nearly 800 km in six days on a tandem bicycle. Cycling is part physical challenge and a lot of
psychological challenge. It's usually the mental part that gives up first.
I worried that Isaac wouldn't be able to handle the challenge due to the stress of the 5:45am starts
and the 6-10 hours a day in the saddle. It turned out that I was the one who "hit the wall" first. We
had completed 440 km in three days, my mind and body were saying that they had had enough.
We had gone out too strong, joining fast riders who were averaging 30-35km/h. We could really
move on the down-hills but our touring tandem bike was very heavy climbing hills and pushing
across the windswept flats. We dropped out of the group and pulled into a variety store. Two other
riders turned around and came back to help us.
Isaac was tired but mentally strong. He pushed me: "Come on dad, we got this! We can do this dad!"
Together we learned what we were capable of.
On day five, we found out that a young women waiting for housing in the new building we were
fundraising for, had died from bad heroin. The streets had taken another victim. Housing would have
made a difference. People are dying everyday while they wait for housing. Housing would bring
stability, permanence and a place to work through challenges of disability, mental health and
addictions.
On day five, we rode with the guilt that we hadn't done enough both individually and collectively as
citizens. We rode with the stories of pain, suffering, brokenness and homelessness swirling in our
heads. There was an urgency in our cadence on day five that pushed us up and over the
Appalachians. People who are struggling with more than they can cope with, need our help. We have
to dig deep and really care. We have the ability to end homelessness, but we just don't have the will.
Not all that different from cycling long distances. My son's urgings are the same, "Come on dad, we
got this" and "We can do this dad."
Written by: Jeffrey Neven
http://www.cbc.ca/thenational/blog/2014/10/isaacs-ride.html