Gearing Up: Who Are We?
Mission
Gearing Up is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide women in transition from drug and alcohol addiction, domestic violence, and/or homelessness with the skills, equipment, and guidance to safely ride a bicycle for exercise, transportation, and personal growth.
The term “women in transition” refers to women who have been formerly incarcerated, histories of abuse and trauma as kids and/or as adults, have used drugs and/or alcohol as a way to cope with painful experiences and are learning how to live a crime-free sober life with purpose and meaning.
While in transition, bicycling offers a mode of transportation, opportunities for social connectedness and employment, as well as countless psychological and physical health benefits. A primary goal of Gearing Up is to provide women with regular coaching, mentoring, and support to adapt healthy lifestyle changes, promote personal growth, and use biking for transportation.
Background & History
Gearing Up was founded in May 2009 by Kristin Gavin, a graduate of Temple University’s Masters Program in Exercise and Sport Psychology. After starting and implementing a fitness program at Interim House, Gavin developed Gearing Up to address the immediate and long term physical and emotional needs of women in transition.
Gearing Up currently serves women 18 years and older at three residential and outpatient women’s facilities in Philadelphia: Interim House, a residential recovery home for women in Mt. Airy, CHANCES, an outpatient recovery center for women in Center City, and New Directions for Women, a women’s re-entry home in Germantown.
|
Our Sponsors
|
|
|
|
Make your contribution today and help us provide women in transition with the opportunity to pedal thousands of miles!
|
