Spring 2023 Cory’s Ride Program Update
2023 is shaping up to be a blockbuster year for the Cory’s Ride program. We are thrilled to share some wonderful updates to share with you. As anyone who’s been following along on our journey can attest, Cory’s Ride is already accomplishing so many goals that we created for the program. And, we’re constantly coming up with new objectives that have us really excited. Read on to find out what we’ve been up to with Cory’s Ride so far this year.
This program started just three years ago, and more than 50 kids have been directly impacted by the program. They’ve been given the opportunity to build friendships, learn responsibility, develop leadership skills, live a healthier lifestyle, and experience the joy of riding a bike. Students from San Rafael High School, Davidson, Venetia Valley, and Sinaloa Middle School have gotten to know each other and ride together through the program. It’s been incredible to see this community blossom, and we saw the fruits of it this past holiday season.
Cory’s Ride Program Updates – Spring 2023
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We hired two Cory’s Ride program graduates to be paid MCBC interns. Yeison Alvarez (Spring 2021) and Leslie Parra (Spring 2022) have been working 5-10 hours per week on Cory’s Ride. They’ve planning group rides, communicating with students and their families, working with Canal Alliance to recruit more Cory’s Ride students, and facilitating classes. They assisted in planning the Bicycle Film Festival Marin County on April 6th which was a huge success! We’re proud and excited to see our interns continue to grow with the program. When they’re not working for MCBC, Yeison and Leslie are both attending College of Marin. Yeison bikes to class every day on his Cory’s Ride bike.
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We recently recruited our 5th cohort of Cory’s Ride students, who finished their required classes and received their bikes! As in the past, we partnered with Canal Alliance and San Rafael High School. We recruited interested and deserving students from their UP! (University Prep) and AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) programs, respectively. We normally have a 50/50 gender split with Cory’s Ride cohorts, but this one is 80% female. We’re thrilled to see so many young female riders interested in discovering the power of the bike.
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After a series of planning discussions about expanding Cory’s Ride to Marin City, we’ve partnered with the Play Marin summer camp program and will be forming a new cohort in the coming months. We’re looking to recruit 10-15 middle and high school students. We’ll be working with them twice a week, two hours a day, for six weeks. We can’t wait to explore the Mill Valley-Sausalito path and show them how to access so many other parts of Marin!
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Cory’s Ride would not be possible without the support of our generous donors, grant providers, and local companies that understand the importance of what we’re trying to accomplish. We’re extremely proud to announce that Cory’s Ride just received its first official corporate sponsor, Marin Clean Energy. The sponsorship team at MCE “recognized that the program aligns closely with the agency’s community equity priorities in reaching low income and underserved populations,” and we’re delighted to forge this partnership. Thank you MCE!
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We’re also hoping to secure additional corporate sponsors, and we’re in discussions with some other great companies in Marin and the greater Bay Area. Stay tuned for updates on those partnerships. Know someone that would be a good fit for supporting Cory’s Ride? Let us know!
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Cory’s Ride is hosting a leadership retreat and biking adventure for our students this summer at NatureBridge. They’ll participate in an overnight outing filled with bike rides, talks, bonfires, team building exercises and more at the beautiful Fort Cronkhite in the Marin Headlands.
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Lastly, Cory’s Ride and MCBC hosted Bicycle Film Festival Marin County at the historic Lark Theater in Larkspur! The idea behind this fun evening of curated bicycle films was to bring our community together, create greater awareness and support for Cory’s Ride, and showcase the diversity and depth of cycling in Marin and beyond. It was an amazing event, and we’re already planning on bringing it back in 2024!
From the bottom of our hearts, we want to thank you for your continued support of the Cory’s Ride program. We’re only a quarter away through the year, and we’re already so proud of all that we’ve been able to accomplish! Thank you to all our Cory’s Ride supporters.
To learn more about Cory’s Ride and help further our impact: CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT CORY’S RIDE
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