A visiting group of cyclists with The Ability Experience chow down and mingle with members of the Mountain State Center for Independent Living during a dinner at its Prince Street location Friday evening. The group, made up of 20 cyclists and eight support personnel, made a stop in Beckley as part of what they call the Journey of Hope, a cross-country ride from Seattle to Washington, D.C. raising funds and awareness for people with disabilities. Brad Davis – The Register Herald
To help raise awareness about those with disabilities, a group of young men sat down with consumers from the Mountain State Center for Independent Living Friday evening.
“We’re with the Journey of Hope, which is a trans-American cycling team,” Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity member Beau Samples said. “We’re riding from Seattle to Washington, D.C., to raise funds and awareness for those with disabilities.” Samples said the group is working to build leaders in their own organization by helping those with disabilities.
“This helps participants all across the nation,” he said. “We want our guys to take away a sense of empathy and leadership from the experiences that they make.”
With all the recent negative publicity about fraternities, Samples said his group is showing that they’re the norm, not the exception.