A Wisconsin senior living provider will offer free rickshaw rides to residents as part of an initiative that brings a three-year-old European movement to the United States.
Lutheran Homes of Oshkosh, or LHO, launched a local Cycling Without Age program Aug. 24. The movement is designed to enhance the quality of life for residents of senior living communities by providing free rides around town. LHO also hopes to increase multigenerational interaction through the effort, according to Gerard Bodalski, the organization’s vice president of healthcare services.
Wisconsin Sen. Richard Gudex and Rep. Gordon Hintz, as well as representatives from the offices of Gov. Scott Walker and U.S. Sen. Ron Johnson’s offices, attended the formal ceremony launching the initiative.
As of April, more than 50 municipalities in Denmark and Norway were offering the Cycling Without Age program with the help of more than 300 rickshaws and more than 2,000 volunteers, according to the program’s website. The program’s founder, Ole Kassow, and Dorthe Pedersen, civil society consultant for the municipality of Copenhagen, will help train Wisconsin volunteers on how to operate the passenger carts.
