Starting a Non-Profit Organization During a Pandemic vs. Learning How to Mountain Bike the North Shore
This past Saturday I celebrated my 1st “Bike-Aversary” — marking 1 year since I started mountain biking Vancouver’s infamous North Shore. I’ve admittedly never celebrated my “1 year” of any other hobby or sport before, but this milestone just felt…different.
Several friends had told me: “You’re new to Vancouver, and this will be a great way to meet people!” & “If you’re going to get into anything here, buy a mountain bike — the North Shore has world-class mountain biking.”
My partner and I had also recently split up, and so I didn’t need any more encouragement — starting mountain biking was going to be my new, super effective (and healthy) way to keep myself busy.
I asked the few mountain bikers in Vancouver I already knew to help me find a bike to buy — during COVID mountain biking (along with every other outdoor activity) has soared in popularity making bikes (and bike parts!) hard to find due to challenges with supply chain and increased demand. But we found one: a 2020 Rocky Mountain Growler. And so off I went with my new friends who kindly (and patiently) showed me the ropes: how to properly protect your body and head with the necessary gear, how to position your body on the climb and descent, how to read the trail and choose the best lines, how to practice trail etiquette, how to assess different features, and how to say “maybe next time” if you’re feeling too nervous or unsure about attempting a new feature.
I was hooked, and little did I know how much this new sport would affect my life.
Back in July 2020, myself and 3 women incorporated Hands On Media Education as a Canadian non-profit organization. The pandemic was in full-force, no one knew what was happening, or how long it would last. But I knew that my small Media Education business (by the same name) needed to grow so we could share our Media and Digital Literacy Education with more and more students, parents and teachers across Canada and beyond.
But it wasn’t easy.
We had many challenges ahead of us: anxiety and exhaustion felt by us all due to the pandemic, a lack of experience in starting a new non-profit, setting-up by-laws, membership, the endless administrative tasks, plus everyone working as a volunteer for the foreseeable future. It was rough, and there were many times where I questioned this path we were on, and wanted to quit.
But on one of these days, I had a mountain bike ride with a few friends. As we were taking a look at a large log we were supposed to roll over, I was told:
“These bikes are so solid and built so well, that if you just commit, stay calm, centered and focused, keep your head up, and stay the course, you will roll it just fine. It’s when you try to stop mid-way, or lose confidence and focus that you will fall and injure yourself".”
I was struck by the similarity between rolling this log, and following through with the establishment of this new non-profit — we as humans can overcome any challenge we may face with the right support, concentration, and commitment.
And so we, as a new non-profit have continued growing, working with new clients, schools and organizations with several exciting new projects in the works. We have also added two new Directors as board members this month, which is really exciting for us.
