Two of Australia’s biggest stars are helping people with mobility problems to stay moving on the Sunshine Coast.
Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman donated $20,000 to local charity Cycling Without Barriers to buy a trishaw.
The volunteer-run charity, which is celebrating its first anniversary, involves volunteer chauffeurs offering rides on trishaw bikes for people with reduced mobility.
The organisation’s focus is to break the barriers of isolation and it plans to grow its invaluable community service.
“Cycling Without Age on one level is as simple as taking people who have reduced mobility and taking them for rides out on our trishaws,” said community captain Tim Rogers.
Cycling Without Barriers Sunshine Coast began at the start of the pandemic but Mr Rogers said it had only been running properly for six months.
“We started in February last year and COVID shut us down within three weeks, we couldn’t even do training,” he said.
“We didn’t start running again until very late July, we’ve really been building great momentum since August.”
The movement originated in Denmark in 2012 and is now in more than 50 countries with more than 2200 community, or chapter, locations including the Sunshine Coast.
The service assists the elderly, those with a disability or people with a medical condition and Mr Rogers said the trishaws sparked conversation, breaking the invisibility felt by some members of the community.
“The trishaw has a real presence about it, it looks like fun, it looks interesting and people come up and chat to you,” he said.
“Our passengers can make connections to people. People come up and talk to them in a way in which they won’t if they were sitting on a park bench.
“We get the most lovely comments from our passengers. For some it’s the first time they have been out in some time or the best day they have had in four years.
“It has great benefits in terms of mental health and wellbeing.”
Currently Cycling Without Age visits various aged care facilities, disability services and special schools in the Caloundra region but Mr Rogers is hoping more people who live at home can benefit from using the service.
“We know there are plenty of people who just live at home and are with a loved one who is their carer, and we want to make sure they can access our services too.
“It’s about keeping people connected to places they can’t get to themselves and carers can join as passengers or enjoy some time off knowing their loved one is being looked after.”
The organisation currently has four trishaws, two purchased with a Sunshine Coast Council grant and two recently added thanks to the generosity of the community.
Keith Urban and Nicole Kidman’s donation enabled the purchase of a third trishaw for the collection.
“The connection there is that Keith’s mum is one of our volunteers,” Mr Rogers said.
Mr Rogers said the charity held a crowdfunding campaign last year to purchase a wheelchair-friendly trishaw, expanding their ability to cater to a wider range of passengers.
Cycling Without Ages is now hoping to raise enough money to purchase a trailer large enough to transport the trishaws and ultimately expand its service area.
Mr Rogers says a community event happens every Wednesday from 2pm at Happy Valley for locals with reduced mobility to experience a trishaw ride.
To donate, visit chuffed.org and search “Cycling Without Age Sunshine Coast: Keep Rides Going and Growing” or for more information call 0484 248 832.
