Duo bikes to Lake Junaluska to raise money for Ukraine
[Music] since the war in ukraine began in february people here in our region have been stepping up to help in special ways and a few of them are really going the distance using their passion for biking to help raise money sarah diamond brings you their story tonight steve and i have just really had a passion for ukraine and what’s going on there john redmond and steve wheeler have always reached out to help others it’s an act of love and as human beings and specifically as christians it’s something that we are you know we are asked to do and it’s something that brings joy as the russian invasion of ukraine continued they felt moved to help i served over there as a missionary and church planter for about five years in the czech republic and have a lot of friends and that that are from ukraine that some even live in ukraine and those pastors that border in romania and serbia and just knowing them and knowing their heart and their passion and seeing the pain that’s going on in ukraine is what really gave me compassion to do that the men decided their shared pastime was the way they could make a difference good excuse to get on the bike but also a really good excuse to raise money for our connectional church that we have over there in the czech republic that is helping support ukraine if there’s something that we can do with this end on this side of the ocean to help those there i’m all for it so redmond and wheeler asked for pledges got on their bikes and made the 100 mile trek from johnson city to lake junaluska both men agree the healthy community means helping others even from far away this is a way to to really reach out and bring god’s kingdom here and help those that can’t help themselves i just feel fortunate that i am still able to get on a bike and pedal that i still have the enthusiasm and the grace to want to help others if you know someone in our region who is serving the community in special ways let us know you can nominate your community heroes by visiting our website wjhl.com and clicking the community tab