Eastern students to travel hundreds of miles for charity
Money donated will benefit bicycle riding missionaries in Asia
Cassie Fink/Staff Reporter
Issue date: 4/11/08 Section: News
This weekend, fifteen Eastern students will travel 200 miles.
On bicycles.
The students are raising money for Gospel for Asia. Missionaries for the GFA are native people who minister in their own countries. Because of bad road conditions, these missionaries rely on bicycles to get around. In some cases, the missionaries will have to ride about 200 miles to reach a destination.
The students are asking people to sponsor their cause by either pledging donations for the miles they cover, or by simply giving a flat donation.
"It's like [we are] making a sacrifice for God," said sophomore sociology major Stephen Dalecheck. Dalecheck will be one of the members participating in the bike trip. He participated in the event last year and said he is excited to participate this year.
Nine bikers will begin their trip at 3 a.m. on Saturday in Dekalb, riding 12 hours and about 100 miles till they reach their stopping point in Gibson City. Six people will follow the bikers in a car to ensure their safety. On Sunday, the team will leave Gibson City at 5 a.m. and ride 10 hours to Charleston.
For those who contributed to the event, a team member will contact the sponsor to inform them of the miles they covered and to collect the money. After the trip, the group will continue to collect donations for GFA. One hundred percent of the proceeds will go toward buying bikes and supplies for the missionaries, Dalecheck said.
Riding along with Dalecheck is senior mathematics major Kenny Haggard. Haggard organized the trip last year. After reading a booklet on GFA, Haggard decided he wanted to find a way to contribute to the organization.
He gathered a group of his friends from the Christian Campus House and planned a bike trip to recreate the traveling the GFA missionaries do.
"This is basically a group of students who want to support this organization and want to help out," Haggard said.
Despite the long distances, Haggard said the trip created a bond between the participants.
"We finally, at one point, had everyone [spread] across the entire road. It was close to the end and we were all encouraging each other to keep going," he said.
By the end of the trip, Haggard and his friends raised about $3,000.
The group plans to raise the same amount of money this year and hopes people realize the donations are going towards a good cause, Haggard said.
"There is a stigma about missionaries going [to other countries] and changing the culture, but with this organization, it's their own culture talking," Haggard said. "What these [missionaries] do by simply traveling on a bike is amazing."
Cassie Fink can be reached at 581-7942 or at cafink@eiu.edu.
On bicycles.
The students are raising money for Gospel for Asia. Missionaries for the GFA are native people who minister in their own countries. Because of bad road conditions, these missionaries rely on bicycles to get around. In some cases, the missionaries will have to ride about 200 miles to reach a destination.
The students are asking people to sponsor their cause by either pledging donations for the miles they cover, or by simply giving a flat donation.
"It's like [we are] making a sacrifice for God," said sophomore sociology major Stephen Dalecheck. Dalecheck will be one of the members participating in the bike trip. He participated in the event last year and said he is excited to participate this year.
Nine bikers will begin their trip at 3 a.m. on Saturday in Dekalb, riding 12 hours and about 100 miles till they reach their stopping point in Gibson City. Six people will follow the bikers in a car to ensure their safety. On Sunday, the team will leave Gibson City at 5 a.m. and ride 10 hours to Charleston.
For those who contributed to the event, a team member will contact the sponsor to inform them of the miles they covered and to collect the money. After the trip, the group will continue to collect donations for GFA. One hundred percent of the proceeds will go toward buying bikes and supplies for the missionaries, Dalecheck said.
Riding along with Dalecheck is senior mathematics major Kenny Haggard. Haggard organized the trip last year. After reading a booklet on GFA, Haggard decided he wanted to find a way to contribute to the organization.
He gathered a group of his friends from the Christian Campus House and planned a bike trip to recreate the traveling the GFA missionaries do.
"This is basically a group of students who want to support this organization and want to help out," Haggard said.
Despite the long distances, Haggard said the trip created a bond between the participants.
"We finally, at one point, had everyone [spread] across the entire road. It was close to the end and we were all encouraging each other to keep going," he said.
By the end of the trip, Haggard and his friends raised about $3,000.
The group plans to raise the same amount of money this year and hopes people realize the donations are going towards a good cause, Haggard said.
"There is a stigma about missionaries going [to other countries] and changing the culture, but with this organization, it's their own culture talking," Haggard said. "What these [missionaries] do by simply traveling on a bike is amazing."
Cassie Fink can be reached at 581-7942 or at cafink@eiu.edu.
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