$66,06066%Goal:
$100,000
Kingston
Hosted by Homes for Heroes
What moves you? The Ride for Refuge, a family-friendly fundraising bike + walk in support of local charities serving people seeking hope, safety, and freedom. Join us Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023!
Community Sponsors
Kingston (Homes for Heroes) is super grateful for our fantastic 2023 sponsors! View all sponsors >
2023 RIDE Photos
Thanks to all of our amazing photographer volunteers! If you've got RIDE Day photos or videos you'd like to share, email them to photos@bluesea.org.
Kingston Scoreboard
Are you thrashing the competition (for a good cause)? Find out here! Stats are updated every 15 minutes. See how you stack up on the national scoreboard >
The Challenge
Got a big-hearted business, workplace, group, church, or community? Step up and join the Challenge to compete for your local pride in support of RIDE. Check the National Challengeboard to see more!
About Homes for Heroes
Our mission is to provide a caring and comprehensive solution to homelessness among Canada’s veterans. We are building unique, affordable and innovative urban villages to house veterans during their transition back to civilian life; and, providing full-service, wrap-around programming that will deliver the resources, training and counselling necessary to ensure their success on this journey – enabling them to achieve the goal of living independently in the long term. The design of our Villages is deliberate and is intended to maximize a sense of community, teamwork and peer-to-peer support. This approach was developed in direct consultation with our Canadian Veterans – it is a program developed by Veterans for Veterans and reflects their unique strengths, weaknesses, experiences, social norms, needs and aspirations. These factors, taken together, suggest that Veterans need, and deserve, an approach to homelessness that varies from other homeless populations.
Housing consists of villages of 20 “tiny” homes arranged in an inward-facing, “barracks format” to facilitate peer-to-peer support. But our Villages don’t look like a “barracks” – they are attractive communities, set in a park-like atmosphere. They provide a positive contribution to the host community while creating a sense of pride, identity and ownership among their residents. Each Village will also incorporate a central resource centre, a counselling office, and community garden.
Each home is under 300 square feet in size but fully equipped with all the features of a larger home. “Tiny homes” aren’t just trendy, they are the perfect platform for someone transitioning from living rough: a safe, private, self-contained space in which to keep their belongings, attend to their needs and start on the path to recovery within a community of their peers.
But housing is just the first step, and not an adequate solution by itself. Once housed, we provide our resident Veterans with a customized program of resources, training and counselling necessary to ensure their success on this journey.
In partnership with leading local social service agencies, and Veterans Affairs Canada, we offer individualized counselling and training programs for each veteran, monitoring their progress against a well-defined and proven self-sufficiency matrix. Residency in the Village will be transitional, with the goal of having each veteran leave the Village and re-enter mainstream society, employed, stable and self-sufficient, likely after one to three years, but only when they have achieved their personal goals.
Event Day Details
Save the date - RIDE Day is September 23, 2023!
StartGoogle Map
4034 Bath Road Kingston Ontario K7M 4Y4
The event begins and ends at the Collins Bay Legion 631.
Schedule
- 3:00 pm: Meet Check-in + Welcome
- 4:00 pm: Move Send-off
- 5:00 pm: Munch Light meal served
- 6:00 pm: Mosey Thank You! See you in 2024!
Not able to join us at the Main Event? We hope you'll register, fundraise and participate offsite with friends and family.
Route Details
- Route Distances: We have great routes where you can walk 2.5 or 5 km or bike 10 or 20 km.
- Rest Stops: There will be one rest stop on each route with yummy snacks and drinks.
- Signage: Routes will be well-signed with our bold orange RIDE signs.
- Route Support: Route marshals, rest stop hosts, and support vehicle drivers will provide support along the route.
- Children 12 and Under must be accompanied by a parent or guardian at all times.
- No Pets: We love our little furballs like you do, but pets are not permitted at Ride for Refuge except for approved and trained service animals. Read more about our pet policy >
Check-in
- All participants check-in personally at the event on Saturday, September 23, 2023.
- T-shirts! Fundraising participants who raise $150+ (or $75+ for those under 18) will receive a RIDE shirt as a thank you on Event Day, while supplies last.
- There is no registration fee to participate in the Ride for Refuge, but most participants raise $250-300 or more in support of their charity.
Have questions? Visit the FAQ section!
Waivers
All participants should register online.
- Adults accept the waiver automatically when they register online.
- Youth/Children: under 18 need a waiver signed by their parent or guardian.
- An online waiver form will be emailed to all parents/guardians before RIDE Day.
- You may also bring a filled-out paper waiver.
- Waivers will be available at check-in on RIDE Day.
What to Bring
A few common sense suggestions:
- A cell phone for emergencies (recommended but not required)
- Your bike and helmet or walking shoes
- Extra snacks if you have allergies or food sensitivities
- Your own water bottle
- Warm layers with moisture-repelling clothing. Late September weather can be cool, with rain and wind. The weather might also be gorgeous and sunny. So be sure to keep your eye on the forecast.
- A passion for the charity you're walking and fundraising for!
Handling Money
- Credit Card: The Best Option! Simple, secure, automatically tax receipted for gifts of $20+. Visit the Donate page, share your personal page link, or have your donor call the RIDE Head Office.
- Cheques: The Old Faithful - made out to Ride for Refuge with your name on the Memo line. Mail them to RIDE Head Office along with your completed pledge form.
- Cash: You have 2 options:
- 1. Login to FundHub, click “Enter $$ and Cheques,” create pledges for your cash donations, pay them off with your personal credit card, and keep the cash. OR...
- 2. Write a cheque (made out to “Ride for Refuge”) for the total amount of cash you’ve collected. Mail it to the RIDE Head Office with your completed pledge sheet.
Kingston Maps
Check out this year's RIDE route maps below:
Begin at the Collins Bay Legion, to Rotary back up to Bayridge and Coverdale down to Front and back to legion. 2 times if doing 20 km
2.5km Turnaround at the corner of the waterfront trail and Cloverdale Drive
Contact Us
RIDE Kingston 2023
The RIDE Team Participant & Donor Services
Toll Free 1.877.743.3413 / Phone 519.603.2250
Email kingston@rideforrefuge.org