Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake’s annual Walkway of Flags now on display
The Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake’s annual Walkway of Flags is now and display, and will be over the course of the upcoming Fourth of July weekend.
The Walkway of Flags project honors the courage of area men and women, however they served – whether in the armed forces, in their communities or by supporting their families. It takes bravery for all of these – to be a soldier, to raise children, to care for the elderly or disabled, to teach a class, to work on a farm or to run a small business. It is these “everyday heroes” for which the Walkway of Flags is designed.
This Fourth of July weekend, sidewalks at Mountain Lake City Park, along the Veterans’ Memorial, are lined with small American flags, each flag bearing the name of a person honored through a gift to Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake. Following the weekend, the flags will continue to be displayed throughout the month of July around the grounds of the Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake communities – The Village and The Lodge. These flags stand as a powerful testament to the love of, and service to, country, community and family.
Stroll through the flags and take the time to read the name on each flag – the name of an everyday hero, quite possibly your neighbor, friend, relative – of just someone whose name you recognize.
All proceeds will be used to improve the lives of those living at Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake communities – all courageous everyday folks in their own right. Monies have been earmarked to purchase a specially-designed rickshaw bicycle that will give Good Samaritan Society-Mountain Lake residents and tenants a new, wonderful experience.
The idea of the rickshaw bicycle comes from Cycling Without Age (www.cyclingwithoutage.org), a movement started in 2012 by Ole Kassow of Denmark. Ole wanted to help the elderly get back on their bicycles, but he had to find a solution to their limited mobility. The answer was a rickshaw and he started offering free bike rides to the local nursing home residents.
He then got in touch with a civil society consultant, Dorthe Pedersen, at the municipality of Copenhagen, Denmark, who was intrigued by the idea and together they bought the first five rickshaws and launched Cycling Without Age, which has now spread to all corners of Denmark, and has now spread to Norway, Switzerland, Iceland, Sweden, Finland, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Italy, Singapore, United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, Spain, Slovakia, Netherlands, France and Chile – and in several more countries around the world.
Volunteers (pilots) sign up for bike rides with the elderly through a simple booking system as often or as rarely as they want to. It’s all driven by people’s own motivation. As of November 2015, more than 63 of Denmark’s 98 municipalities offered Cycling Without Age from well over 400 rickshaws – and the numbers are still growing. More than 3,000 pilots ensure that the elderly get out of their nursing homes, out on the bikes to enjoy the fresh air and the community around them. They give them the right to wind in their hair.
