When my father, Odysseus, and his men sailed off to the Trojan War, they were confident their gods favored a quick victory. Instead, the siege of Troy lasted ten years. After Troy fell, the survivors made their way home to Sparta, Mycenae, Pylos, and elsewhere in the ancient Peloponnese. Neither my father nor any of his troops arrived home with the rest. We waited for years as the news grew worse. Odysseus was dead, we were told,or imprisoned, or, worst yet, he had married another woman and abandoned my mother Penelope, my brother Telemachus, and me.


If he is alive somewhere, his thoughts may wander to Penelope and Telemachus, but he won’t be thinking of me. I am the daughter he doesn’t know exists. Odysseus went off to the Trojan War when his son, Telemachus, was barely old enough to walk. His wife, Penelope, was a teenage bride, and is now a young wife, mother, and queen who has to try to rule Ithaca without him.


I was born seven months after he left. I am a hero’s daughter and a princess of his realm, but I have lived my entire life without a father. I’m nineteen now, and still waiting.


All over the world, and throughout history children grow up as I have. This website will focus on the children of those men and women who have gone off to fight America's wars, and provide information and resources for all who care about military families and want to help.

Monday, August 30, 2010

Bike Free!


"The mission of Bike Free is to bring to joy, freedom, and fun of a bicycle ride to others – specifically the children of our military families."
Paul Lebelle and Adam Burkowske are two men who by their own admission no longer qualify as kids, but remember how important their bikes were to them  growing up. It was these memories that were the groundwork for their nonprofit group, Bike Free.  
"As fortunate as we were to have a bike growing up," they say, "we knew that there are so many kids today who aren’t as fortunate.  We spoke about this after work on more than a few occasions and decided we needed to spend all of our spare time planning and preparing for a 6,000+ mile, fund-raising bike ride across, up, and down our great country. With both of our families having military backgrounds, and our country’s increasing involvement in the Middle East and Afghanistan, we knew that children of our military could really use a bicycle.  We believe that being outside in the fresh air, sunshine, and physical activity not only raises your heart rate, but also raises your spirit."
They hope their trip across America (fully self-supported, with about sixty pounds of gear on Cannondale touring bikes) from the Chesapeake Bay to San Diego, will to raise enough money to distribute at least 1,000 bicycles and helmets to military kids by Christmas time.  "With the support of the Rotary and our Friends and Sponsorsand the help of the USO in identifying military families and distributing the bikes, we’ll accomplish our mission!" they say.
Along the way, various fund-raising events will take place including a few dinners at Roy’s Hawaiian Fusion Restaurants.  "We’ll be stopping by Rotary Clubs and other organizations, giving talks and presentations, fairs, and festivals," they report.  "If you want to hold a Bike Free event, please let us know!"
Check out their website, which includes a "where are we?" page, where using their own reports, maps and GPS tracking you can follow their journey. They're in Idaho as I write this on August 30, 2010, headed ultimately for San Diego.  They also post photo albums and slide shows on their site and on You Tube. Here's a link to the website donation page, if you want to help out. Just $10 buys a helmet and $125 buys a bike and a helmet for a military child.  
Posted by About AART at 7:50 AM

1 comment:

  1. UnknownSeptember 7, 2010 at 6:06 PM

    Paul's bike was stolen in Portland, Oregon yesterday! There's information on the Bike Free website. A terrible thing.

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