Over 200 industry riders traded desks for saddles to Pedal for Homeless Youth on Thursday 24 July in Brisbane’s Queen St Mall.
Riding in timed sessions, 23 companies from the property and construction industry joined us to test their fitness and fundraise for homeless building projects, which take young people off couches, streets and cars and into safe, supportive homes. Together, the cyclists raised over $46,000 – a 50% increase in donations from last year’s event!
“Every night, while many of us sleep soundly, more than 8,600 young Queenslanders aged 15–24 are homeless,” says Antoinette Rusby-Perera, State Manager QLD, Property Industry Foundation. “These young people often face dangerous, uncertain conditions as they search for shelter – especially as the winter cold sets in.”
Our mates from Built kicked the event into gear in the first of 14 x 20-min sessions running from 8am through to 2.30pm – each with space for 20 riders. Property Industry Foundation CEO Kate Mills jumped on the lead bike to remind riders of our mission to increase the number of bedrooms available for homeless youth and support initiatives that have a tangible impact on youth homelessness. “It’s super important that every young person in Australia has a safe and secure place to sleep,” says Kate.
Pumping tunes and a bit of healthy competition kept riders spinning through lung burning sprints. “Pedal brings the industry together – not only for bit of friendly competition and fun, but in a show of solidarity for positive change in the lives of homeless youth,” says Rebecca Field, QLD Events & Engagement Manager. “The funds raised means more bedrooms built through The Haven Project and more safe night’s sleep for vulnerable young people. Thank you to all that took part or donated.”
Top Individual Fundraisers:
- Hannah Steeds from Team Built
- Phil Christaldi from Team Mecone
- Michelle Grant from Team Tynans
Top Team Fundraisers:
Queens of the Pedal
- Renee Gibbs (The GPT Group) 16.55kms
- Monique Windley (Lendlease) 16.0kms
- Shelby Kirkman (The Urban Developer) 15.65kms
Kings of the Pedal
- Josh Dickens (Development Directive) 15.5kms
- Bryn Moffatt (PCA) 15.12kms
- David DiMarco (The Urban Developer) 15.01kms
Most Team Kilometres Cycled*
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KPMG with an average of 13.0kms
*based on most kms averaged by teams of various sizes
A whopping total of 2108.7kms were clocked by our cyclists during the day! That’s almost the same distance as driving from Brisbane to Adelaide!
Click here to see the overall team leaderboard
Big thanks to everyone who made it down to the mall to show support for young people out in the cold, alongside our Queensland Foundation team, volunteers and sponsors. You can still DONATE and help us reach our $60,000 goal!
Our winners’ ceremony at GPT
From left to right. Ella Newsome, (Property Industry Foundation Future leader) Alice Logan-Edwards (GPT), Hannah Steeds (Built), Renee Gibbs (GPT), Antoinette Rusby Perera (Property Industry Foundation), Indre Ceikaite (Built)
