The past few days have been VERY busy but overall very rewarding! From Friday-Sunday I volunteered as a part of the Ride To Remember for the Alzheimer’s Association South Carolina chapter. This is a 3 day, 252 mile bike ride to raise funds and awareness for Alzheimer’s right here in South Carolina. It extends from Simpsonville to Charleston. They ride to Newberry the first day, Orangeburg the second day and the last 100 miles to Charleston on the third day. This is an incredible group of people. I actually rode the first day back in 2015 however I only made it about 20 miles because I was riding with a torn up knee! In 2016, I returned to volunteer over all 3 days. I ended up taking a few years away from Ride but I’m so glad that I was able to come back this year.
I drove up from Columbia to Simpsonville early Friday morning and got my first volunteer assignment of the weekend. I spent time at the first rest stop of the day and had a great time serving the riders that stopped. I moved on throughout the day to other rest stops and eventually made it to Newberry. It was great to catch up with old friends. I got my assignment for Saturday and headed back to Columbia after dinner.
Saturday I was tasked to be at the ending hotel in Orangeburg by 10:30. This was perfect because it also allowed me to go to my women’s ministry meeting in the morning. All week I’d been struggling with my spells and they gathered around and prayed over me. That was such an amazing start to my day! I headed to Orangeburg to be on the lookout for media and the Congressional delegation and welcome the riders as they came across the finish line. I had a great time cheering, losing my voice and spraying the riders with water guns as they came across the line. Saturday night’s dinner is an amazing barbecue dinner so I decided to stay and enjoy the camaraderie and head home after dinner.
On Sunday, I was tasked with going to the last water stop before the finish and taking pictures and videos of the riders coming past. I worked out that I had to leave around 7:30. Part of volunteering is rolling with the punches. I got a call at 5:45 asking if I could make it to an earlier water stop. So I got ready quickly and hit the road to Charleston. I had a great time helping serve our riders again and when the last riders came through I continued on to the last water stop to serve them further down the road. I also got to reconnect with one of my fellow advocate friends Zoe! She was out there volunteering with her company. I eventually headed another 10 miles down the road to the finish line of the entire ride. It was great to see those riders coming across the finish line after 252 long miles!
During those 3 days, we had multiple riders thanking us as volunteers for what we were doing. For me it was a no-brainer. It was a privilege to help support those incredible riders. But it was also selfish. Volunteering gives me an immense amount of joy and I have found it to be very helpful in combatting my anxiety and depression. On Monday, I came across this article on my Facebook. https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/a37nvk/volunteering-is-the-best-kept-secret-for-mental-health-stressweek2017
This article is absolutely amazing. It speaks levels of truth that I have struggled to express for years! Participating in this ride in 2015 is what led me to become involved in advocacy and over the years expand my volunteer reach within the organization. I am so grateful that I can continue to serve and battle my anxiety and depression. I am looking forward to next year already!
Hiking Through Anxiety & Depression 