Sharon and Tim Bridgman at the start of their journey in 2012
What compelled us around ShelterBox was that it didn’t matter who you were, where you came from - the organization helps people who have lost everything in an instant.
(PRWEB) May 16, 2016
Tim Bridgman has been quietly cycling around the world, and has been an inspiration to countless people along the way. Tim and his wife, Sharon, started the journey in 2012 but she was killed in 2014. Bridgman has carried on and will be in downtown Portland, Oregon (the cycling capital of North America) on Tuesday, May 17th, where he will share his story to hundreds of people at 1:00 PM.
On June 4, 2012 Sharon and Tim Bridgman set off from the North Cape of Norway to cycle unsupported and self-funded around the world. The husband and wife team from Devon, England were riding to raise awareness and support of ShelterBox, hoping to raise roughly $18,000 for their favorite nonprofit. They rode through Scandinavia, Eastern Europe and East Africa to Capetown in South Africa, passing through 23 countries and covering 15,939 miles. They then headed to Ushuaia in the Southern tip of Argentina and rode north passing between Chile and Argentina before reaching Bolivia which at this point covered just under 21,000 miles, climbing over 284,000 meters through 26 countries.
On April 26, 2014 in a remote area in south west Bolivia, Sharon was hit by a 4x4 and was killed instantly. Having such a love for life and everyone she met Tim was devastated at the loss of his wife and best friend. Having the desire to continue to help a charity as important as ShelterBox became even more important with so many losing the ones closest to them in an instant from natural disaster and civil unrest.
Now, two years after the passing of Sharon, Tim is currently making his journey through the Pacific Northwest before finally finishing in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. He is in the final few months of this amazing trek around the globe. He has cycled through 39 countries, covered nearly 33,000 miles, climbed 500 km (100 km higher than the International Space Station), and been an inspiration to countless people along the way with his story of hope, loss, courage, and fortitude. Since crossing into the United States, people have been reaching out to Tim in exemplary ways- providing meals, moral support, and shelter.
"The accident reminds you that you can lose all that in an instant. Mentally I needed to go back and finish what we started. After Sharon’s death I went back to home and wasn’t prepared to be back there without her. I had left my bike in Bolivia because I knew that I would be back. I took several months off because it was the rainy season in Bolivia and would not have been able to cross the salt flats. In February 2015 I went back to the Andes to train and get back in shape. From there I went back to Bolivia, to the place where Sharon was killed. I brought with me a box of letters from so many people who wrote to me and to Sharon, from people who heard about her death. I buried the box of letters there and from there I started my journey again.” ~ Tim Bridgman
“What compelled us around ShelterBox was that it didn’t matter who you were, where you came from-the organization helps people who have lost everything in an instant. ShelterBox is amazing in how it uses the goodwill of people to fulfill the mission. So many charities waste money and resources, and you never really know where the donations are going. But with ShelterBox, you see so many people around the world who have lost everything in crisis, benefitting from the work of the organization. People go through life and when disaster happens in an entire area there is no one to turn to. ShelterBox gives people dignity and basic supplies, providing a stepping stone to the rebuilding process.” ~ Tim Bridgman
ShelterBox has a dedicated donation page in Tim and Sharon's honor: http://shelterbox.kintera.org/bridgmantrek
About ShelterBox
Since 2000, ShelterBox has provided shelter, warmth, and dignity following more than 250 disasters in over 90 countries and territories. ShelterBox responds urgently to earthquake, volcano, flood, hurricane, cyclone, tsunami, or conflict by delivering boxes of essential aid and other supplies. Each iconic green ShelterBox contains a disaster relief tent for an extended family, a stove, blankets, a water filtration system, emergency lighting, and other tools for survival. ShelterBox USA is donation funded, volunteer driven and is headquartered in Sarasota, Florida. ShelterBox is an official Project Partner of Rotary International.
