MY PROGRESS
3
Donors
18%
Of fundraising target reached
I am Cycling for TheOceanCleanup.com
Welcome to my Cycling Fundraiser page for TheOceanCleanup.com !ย ย
I set up this fundraiser on April 22 - Earth Day, 2024, and started a solo cycling trip from Hobe Sound, Florida to NYC, while fundraising and spreading the world of TheOceanCleanup.com along the way. I am now continuing my fundraising mission through all of 2024, and I committed to be fossil fuel free and only use my bike for the majority of errands and transportation trips this year.ย
The Ocean Cleanup.com recently announced their need for 4 Billion in funding to complete the cleanup of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. It is critical we ask our governments and big businesses (Pepsi, Nestle, and other single use plastics companies) to help in funding the removal of theย trash from our oceans now. The plastic has been found to increase Climate Change in our oceans by decreasing the ability for our oceans to sequester carbon, and as it continues to harm fish, marine animals and people, it must be removed from our oceans as soon as possible. Please see the Scientific Research articles page from TheOceanCleanup.com for more information on how the plastics damage our oceans.
I find it critical to support The Ocean Cleanupโs mission to remove 90% of floating ocean plastic by 2040. Thatโs 16 years away, but if we can help them scale up operations, they will be able to remove the plastics sooner, saving whales, turtles, birds and fish from eating harmful waste that shouldnโt have to end up in our worldโs rivers and oceans in the first place. I have been cleaning up plastics from our beaches with my sons since they were able to walk, for at least 20 years now. I am doing this fundraiser for my sons and their generation, because they deserve a healthy and clean environment. It pains me to realize that an entire generation has been raised, thinking that trash on the beaches and in our oceans is a natural occurence, when I experienced a childhood without this problem. We need to fund the real solutions, now.
I set a goal to solo cycle up the East Coast, taking a coastal route to be as close to the ocean as possible so I could spread the word about this non-profit to people who cared about our oceans. I succeeded, and completed 1,554 miles, from Hobe Sound, Florida to NYC/CT on May 22-23, 2024. I saw coastal communities on the Eastern Seaboard which I had never visited before by car. Many of these communities rely on fishing, boating, surfing and the ocean for their health and livlihood. I documented businesses, beaches, and cycling infrastructure along the way that were excellent or in need of improvement. I plan to submit my findings to advocacy groups and government agencies, with the hope of improving the ability for others to benefit from cycling and electric biking as a commute option.ย
Would you please make a donation today to support TheOceanCleanup.com? 100% of the donation goes directly to TheOceanCleanup.com and you will get a tax receipt and email thank you from me almost immediately.ย
Please tell your family and friends about my cycling fundraiser for our oceans! I would really appreciate it if you could help me get the word out. The impact increases with the number of people who are aware.ย
Thank you in advance for your generosity; it means a lot!ย We have the solutionโ we just need to finance it! Please see the videos on YouTube or TheOceanCleanup.com to learn about the work being done in Gautamala, Malaysia, Jamaica, Los Angeles, the Great Pacific Garbage Patch and the worldโs most polluted rivers. The videos are fun to watch and show the processes of how the work gets done and how the people of each country are educated to stop polluting our worlds oceans and learn how to recycle and remove the plastics from their rivers and change behaviors to eliminate this problem in the future. ย
MY ACHIEVEMENTS
Created a team
Personalized my page
Made a self donation
Shared my profile
Received my first donation
Reached 25% of my fundraising goal
Reached 50% of my fundraising goal
Reached 75% of my fundraising goal
Increased fundraising goal over 200
Reached my fundraising goal
Thanked my donors
My Updates
November 2024: COP29 & The Earth Day Flag
Sunday 17th NovLet's Finally Give Them the Funding they Need!
Tuesday 8th OctGrand Central Station, NYC | May 23, 2024
Saturday 25th MayI made it to New York City!
Saturday 25th MayMay 20th, 7:50pm at Lewes-Cape May Ferry, Delaware
Tuesday 21st May1300 milesโฆ Thank you to all the Trek Bikes Shops and new Donors in Lewes, Delaware!
Tuesday 21st May I made it to Lewes, Delaware, ferry 5 minutes late last night and ended up staying at The Blue House Hotel, a creative and colorful spot, one mile from the ferry and 2 blocks from the beach. Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! Headed to Cape May today, and on to NYC.ย ShareEdenton, NC Waterfront May 16, 2024
Saturday 18th MayVirginia is for Bike Lovers! Thank you, REI & Trek Bikes!
Saturday 18th May Hello from Virginia! I arrived in Virginia, ย walking my bike across the state line, just before midnight on my birthday eve. My rear tire blew out with a โpopโ like a shotgun just after the North Carolina visitor center on the other side of Route 17. This is my first actual hole, burned through a bike tire, where you can see the fuzzy white threads inside the tire. My Trek Domane 5 was purchased in 2022 and these are the same tires Iโve had on the bike since it was purchased. I am a daily rider, and Iโve never had a flat on this bike until now. I highly recommend Bontrager R1 Tires! Thank you to REI and Trek Bike shops in Virgina Beach for the new tires, and Jay, a local customer who saw my fundraising sign and paid my $100. bill for replacement tires as a donation to my fundraiser for the Ocean Cleanup. I spent some of my birthday on the 16th in the historic town of Edenton, North Carolina and enjoyed a beautiful, sunny day by the waterfront lighthouse and the local homemade pickle,ย sandwich and coffee shops. Thank you to the Inner Banks Inn for the discounted stay in honor of my fundraising ย ride. ShareMotherโs Day 2024 New Bern, North Carolina
Tuesday 14th MayDay 21: 1000 miles cycled milestone! Hobe Sound, Florida to New Bern, North Carolina
Tuesday 14th May Hello! I cycled 90 miles on Motherโs Day to reach the 1,000 mile milestone for the Ocean Cleanup fundraiser. I am currently in New Bern, North Carolina, headed North towards NYC.Day 15: 737 miles biked Charleston to Georgetown, South Carolina
Friday 10th MayDay 14: 675 miles total biked since earth day!
Monday 6th MayDay 6: TOTAL MILEAGE SO FARโ 275 MILES HOBE SOUND TO JACKSONVILLE BEACH/ATLANTIC BEACH FLORIDA
Sunday 28th Apr Hello Friends and Donors,Announcing my 1,300 mile + ride up the East Coast Greenway, from Florida to NYC/CT in Support of the Ocean Cleanup
Thursday 18th AprI am writing to ask for support and announce that I am cycling up the East Coast Greenway later this week, from Florida to NYC/CT, raising funds for The Ocean Cleanup. My last few months in Florida have taught me of the critical need for funding to protect our oceans and the solution- ending fossil fuel use, is still being denied by even my own parents, who still use two fossil fuel cars daily, and have offered to give me a used fossil fuel car I donโt want.
I am embarking on a solo cycling trip on the Greenway this Earth Day, in order to prove my commitment to ending fossil fuels and protecting the earth and itโs oceans.
In the first 3 months of 2024, I have cycled thousands of miles, for health, trips to the grocery store and pharmacy, and Iโve even written several songs while riding my bike!
Several things I learned in Florida while visiting my parents made it very clear to me that we are not doing enough to save our oceans or cool the planet, the number one issue is still the inability of individuals and businesses to give up fossil fuels and convert to net zero fast enough.
I also paddled with endangered manatees, learned about Sea and Shoreline Inc, the number one seagrass restoration business in the world, found a 40 year old conch on the beachโan animal 500 billion years old! that relies on seagrasses as a food source, just like manatees, and I was in tears the next day, realizing in my short lifetime, we have destroyed the habitat for all on earth.
This cycling trip is a โreaction to that inactionโโ I am making a choice to ride the East Coast Greenway, with a backpacker guitar, and play every day, hopefully write songs and stop at other businesses who are also cycling or doing work to cool the earth and oceans.
I do not yet have a support team behind me for this, and am hoping you can help connect me with others and businesses who can donate and also may be interested in hosting me for an overnight OR simply meeting to be video-interviewed on my route.ย
I am on disability and have limited income since a hip replacement in 2020 caused uneven gait and additional spine/hip and mobility problems. I can bike long distances,ย but can not walk long distances or run at all. I am also not able to lift heavy items repeatedly, etcโฆ and am in an ongoing lawsuit for spousal support in California, so my job options and ability to seek new friends are limited. I feel very much a solo Mom, still fighting for a better environment for me and my sons (who I havenโt been able to afford to see in a year now). What can I do but do something that will make me feel better and help others cleanup the planet. I know this journey will help in some way! Your support is invaluable and I hope you will follow along on my journey. Thank you!
Colleenโs Fundraising Page
https://fund.theoceancleanup.com/fundraisers/colleenproppe/community-usd
My Earth Day Story on Medium
https://cproppe.medium.com/in-2024-im-biking-everywhere-for-d5f0b2254338
Join my team
https://fund.theoceancleanup.com/join/BikeforBoyansOceanCleanup
Thank you for your support!
Colleen ๐ดโโ๏ธ๐๐๐
1(415) 205-3490
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In Honor of Aidan Costello & Mariners Swim Team