A simple idea is making Powell River’s backyard a little more accessible and this year it helped make one Powell River family’s Mother’s Day weekend celebration a little more special.
Instead of having to stay behind to watch her mother Maria and sister Kate in the Thrive and Shine Walk/Run, this year Rebecca Glaze participated. She did so with the help of one of the TrailRiders owned by Powell River Mobility Opportunities Society (PRMOS).
May 11 was the fifth annual Thrive and Shine Run/Walk in Powell River. The all-women five- or eight-kilometre event is organized to raise money for Grace House, a safe place for women and children who experience domestic abuse and violence.
The TrailRider is a specially designed wilderness access vehicle. With one wheel, and “sherpas” back and front, the vehicle operates like something between “a rickshaw and a wheelbarrow.” Riders are strapped into the seat above the single wheel and the sherpas help manoeuvre the vehicle along the trail. When not in use it can be collapsed down to fit inside a car’s trunk making it easier to transport.
Rebecca is 29 years old and lives in her own home with full-time support on her parents’ two-acre property south of town. While she can get around on her own, she doesn’t have a lot of endurance, explained her mother. She communicates with others using sign language.
She used the TrailRider for the first time last summer and Maria immediately recognized how great a fit it was for her daughter.
“Her face just lit up,” said Maria. “She signed ‘more’ to let us know she didn’t want to stop to look at the trees, that she wanted to keep moving.”
Last summer Maria and Rebecca went out almost every week that a day-hike was planned with the TrailRiders.
“At one point,” Maria recalled, “we were travelling over a bumpier part of the path and Becky started laughing out loud. It has been absolutely delightful to share that with her and to see her take pleasure in it.”
For Maria the TrailRider gives her an important opportunity to share the outdoors with her daughter. Maria grew up with a mother who would take her for walks and enjoyed being outside. When Rebecca was young, Maria would take her for bike rides in her bike trailer, but as her daughter grew those rides became increasingly difficult.
“We lost the ability to do [outdoors] activities with her,” said Maria.
After those afternoons on the trails, Maria made it her goal to have both her daughters participate with her this year in the Thrive and Shine.
All money from registrations went to support Grace House and the purchase of Freeset Global T-shirts for the event. Freeset is helping to bring Indian women out of the sex-trade in Calcutta and give them job skills.
Rebecca had a lot of support for the event. Her mother and sister took turns with her support workers Stacia Mills and her daughter Jen acting as sherpas along their five-kilometre walk.
“We love our community and what they’re doing with this event,” said Maria. “We love that through Becky’s registration she can help out as well. It feels really good to be able to give back in this way as a family.”
