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Tour de Grape canceled

Unfortunately, the next three weeks got a little bit easier for me tonight. That's because HavenHouse St. Louis, a not-for-profit agency that provides housing for the families of children in St. Louis-area hospital, decided to cancel the Tour de Grape, which was scheduled for May 12-13. Here's the statement just posted on the ride's Web site:

Due to circumstances beyond our control, we regret to inform you that the Tour de Grape, originally scheduled for May 12-13, 2007, has been cancelled. If you already have signed up for the ride, your fee will be refunded shortly.

We thank you for your interest in the event and in HavenHouse St. Louis. ...

While I'm disappointed about the decision, it was a learning experience for me and for HavenHouse. We learned a lot about the ins-and-outs about trying to put on a major fund-raiser, especially in a region that has a wide variety of fund-raisers.

I had the privilege of working with Kathy Sindel, HavenHouse's executive director, and Julie Gaebe, HavenHouse's development director. Kathy and Julie put a lot of energy and dedication to a worthwhile cause, and I applaud the work they've done in building HavenHouse.

Kathy and her husband, Charley, are active cyclists, and I had the pleasure to ride with them as well as with Larry and Mary Jo Keith back in October when we scouted the second day of the event that toured the French Colonial regions of Missouri and Illinois. Larry, Charley and Mary Jo also put a lot of hard work into the event, and I hope to see them often on road.

The committee that planned Tour de Grape has a lot to be proud of, despite the cancellation of the event. I'm sure the lessons learned will help HavenHouse develop successful fund-raising efforts in the future.

Here's some pictures that I took during our scouting trip. It's a shame cyclists will be missing these scenes:


The historic Bolduc House in Ste.
Genevieve, Mo., dates from the 1700s.


The Pierre Menard home near
Chester, Ill. Menard was the first
lieutenant governor of Illinois.


The Mississippi River bridge leading
to Chester, Ill.

Labels: Tour de Grape

Roger 1 comments 10:59 PM

Comments:

What a bummer. I'm sure it was a big letdown for everybody involved.

# posted by  Yokota Fritz : 11:14 AM

 

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