Redmond’s Green will soon get biking on Journey of Hope

Published 2:00 pm Friday, January 31, 2014

Every summer, members of Pi Kappa Phi fraternities at colleges and universities across the country participate in a cross-country bike ride called the Journey of Hope.

The ride is a fundraiser for the fraternity’s national philanthropy Push America, which works to raise awareness of people living with disabilities and raise money for local organizations that work with children with disabilities. The nonprofit’s mission is to build “leaders of tomorrow by serving people with disabilities today” and its vision is to change the way “society views both people with disabilities and fraternities.”

This year, the University of Washington (UW) contingent of Pi Kappa Phi will have four participants on the ride, including sophomore and Redmond native Ryan Green.

Green, an Eastlake High School graduate, said he wants to become a pediatrician, focusing on children with special needs, and hopes the upcoming bike ride will help him learn empathy and see how people overcome obstacles rather than feel sorry for them.

A large part of the two-month ride are daily friendship visits, which give Journey of Hope participants a chance to spend time and bond with people with disabilities. Green said activities range from putting people on planes for the first time, to going to dances to playing baseball.

There are three different Journey of Hope routes starting on the West Coast and ending in Washington, D.C. One starts in Seattle, one starts in Long Beach, Calif. and the third starts in San Francisco. Green will be starting in Long Beach. All three routes are scheduled to meet in the nation’s capital on Aug. 2. Green said his route will start sometime around the second week of June. The total distance of his ride is about 3,555 miles and he said they will do about 70-80 miles a day. Biking is Green’s main form of exercise but he said he has not been on a ride as big as Journey of Hope.

In addition to preparing for the physical challenges of the long bike ride, each Journey of Hope participant must raise a minimum of $5,500.

To raise money for his participation, Green has sent out letters to family and friends, contacted local news outlets and worked to get a piece about his efforts in the newsletter at a yacht club where he is a member. He said he also plans to contact local businesses about sponsorships. So far he has raised a little more than $2,100.

Those who are interested in donating to Green’s cause can do so online by clicking here. They can also send a check addressed to Ryan Green at 4530 17th Ave. N.E., Seattle, Wa., 98105. Checks should be made out to Push America.

This is Green’s second year with Pi Kappa Phi and he said he is participating in Journey of Hope this year because fundraising takes pretty much all year and that is a lot of work to prepare for as a freshman. Because of all the work that goes into participating Green said most people are only able to do the Journey of Hope once.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance,” he said, adding that the remaining three participants from UW are also first-time participants.

Despite all the work he has and will put into it, Green said he is looking forward to helping others and putting smiles on people’s faces. He has talked to previous participants in preparation and said they have told him that things are difficult at first — especially having to ride a bike for eight hours straight — but it will be the best summer of his life.

“We’re giving up a lot, but we’re gaining a lot,” Green said.