During my 36 mile ride on The Kindness Bicycle today, I stopped at the administration offices of the Child Advocacy and Parenting Services offices in Salina, Kansas. The “red carpet” rolled out the moment I entered the door. I was treated to a tour of their offices and talked with all of these very caring individuals. The services provided by CAPS are numerous, they provide; Family Mentoring, Parenting Education, Mornings Out for Moms/Dads, Smart Start, Bullying Prevention and Happy Bear. The in-classroom education programs caught my interest as this is the sort of curriculum I am looking to make part of my 2nd puppet show I am creating for children.
CAPS is bursting at the seams and their offices are in 4 different locations. They are building a state-of-the-art facility called the Donna L. Vanier Children’s Center, thanks in large part to the generosity of the Vanier family.
I also stopped by, unannounced to the Domestic Violence Association of Central Kansas this afternoon and got an enthusiastic greeting by the entire staff. Executive Director, Andrea Quill and everyone in the office this afternoon dropped what they were doing to see the guy on The Kindness Bicycle. We held an impromptu meeting at the entrance to their offices and it couldn’t have been any better. They shared with great enthusiasm the details of the services they provide to the residents of Saline County and I told them of the awareness I am trying to bring about Domestic Violence and Childhood Sexual Abuse.
Thank you to everyone for making today a very special day.

Child Advocacy and Parenting Services Program Director, Deb Jensen took the time to meet with me today at their offices in Salina, Kansas to explain all of the services they provide to the community. Entering their facility I found myself in a child-friendly room named Chris’s Place. This reception area is designed to make a child who has been sexually abused feel comfortable before being interviewed about past experiences. Deb is an energetic, passionate individual who puts so much into her work, spoke proudly of the successes of protecting children and how diligently everyone works to help children gain their lives back by prosecuting the sexual offenders and forever removing them from the child’s life. I was very impressed by all the help this organization is providing to the families in Saline county.
Karl Man reporter for KWCH 12 flagged me down in the downtown area of Salina to learn of The Kindness Bicycle/Bus Tour. Karl was the consummate professional as he covered every detail of what my mission is accomplishing through awareness. Thank you Karl for such an in-depth piece.
With all of the time spent talking in meetings and with people I met on the streets of Salina, I came up about 10 miles short of my needed total for the day. I will ride on one of my days off this weekend to whittle down my deficit of nearly 300 miles.

Riding The Kindness Bicycle past a truck stopped at a red light, the driver after seeing the signs said, “and don’t hit dogs either.” I couldn’t agree more! Most dogs in homes where Domestic Violence is prevalent are abused. There have also been studies that show children who are cruel to dogs are predisposed to being a Domestic Violence perpetrator. Dogs are meant to be helpful to people, they are not to be hurt.
I remember hearing in the early stages of The Kindness Bicycle Tour from Lynn Rosenthal, President Obama’s White House Advisor on Domestic Violence, about the therapeutic powers of dogs on Domestic Violence victims. Having a canine companion as a pet can help to hasten the recovery of a person hurting inside.
Before I left Manhattan today, I stopped at the T. Russell Reitz Regional Animal Shelter to donate most of the many boxes of dog treats given to Bogart. He must have had a 3 year’s supply of treats and I was running out of storage space. I met with Angela, a shelter tech and Honey, a very well cared for Pug. She embraced the goal of One Million Acts Of Kindness and how it would help people be kind to animals.
Today’s 32 mile ride was through the side streets of Salina, I met many friendly people and dogs as well.

Watching children like a hawk so they can soar like an eagle. Keeping children safe is getting harder as time goes by. There aren’t enough safeguards in place to protect children from all the potential harm and danger. The internet children use needs to be monitored and parents need to be ever vigilant. So many predators use the internet to lure children into meeting them. I heard from the parents of 2 young children today, they made the decision to move from their neighborhood after finding out how many sex offenders lived within a few blocks of their house, one lived three doors away. I know you can’t keep running, but you can be ever vigilant. If you need any information on keeping kids safe, visit the website of The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children at; www.missingkids.com
All Kindness Bicycle rides seem to be short the first few days after a “century” ride, the perfect weather conditions are a huge help as well. Today’s short ride of 42 miles turned into a six hour ride. So many people wanted to stop and talk with me about my mission and I had a couple of calls from people I haven’t heard from in years. The word continues to spread.

It takes a really big man to discuss with another man, who is a Domestic Violence or Childhood Sexual Abuse perpetrator about putting an end to the damage they are doing. These perpetrators are everywhere; in the workplace, members of churches, on recreational sports teams, members of organizations, etc…
Most men know a perpetrator, but they may not know he is a perpetrator. It is the time that you know a man is a perpetrator and you choose to do nothing, that is the mind-set which needs to change. Four women a day, every day are losing their lives in the United States due to Domestic Violence. Over fifteen million children, each year, witness Domestic Violence. One in four girls and one in six boys will be sexually assaulted by the age of eighteen. These statistics are staggering, they need to zero. It’s time to start talking! It’s time to turn in every perpetrator you may know!! Call 911. Call the Domestic Violence hotline; (800) 799-SAFE. Call The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children; (800) THE-LOST. Do it today for the sake of those in need. Do it today, tomorrow is too late.
Early in my ride today, Michael, the husband of Kimberly, who works at The Crisis Center in Manhattan, chased me down to thank me for The Kindness Bicycle/Bus Tour. It’s men like Michael who will make a positive difference in these two despicable issues.

Today I rode 101 miles to express my gratitude for all of the unseen heroes who work at Domestic Violence Coalitions, Child Advocacy Centers, Court Advocates, Crisis Centers, Hotlines, etc… These devoted individuals work tirelessly with little thanks and often times in situations that are quite depressing, day in and day out. Today was your day! All of you who work to protect children and women in need were in my thoughts and prayers today as I pedaled in the most perfect weather for bicycling. Thank you everyone, I am grateful for the very important work you do to help those in need.
The hand written thank you is a very powerful expression of one’s thoughts. It has become part of One Million Acts Of Kindness now and forever. I hand write thank yous and try my best to get names and addresses of those who help lend a hand as this wonderful mission unfolds. I wrote about this in early April and it is amazing the response I get from people who receive one of my thank yous. I admit that I miss a few names or I can’t find the address of the person once I leave town, I’m hoping to get better. I’m vowing to get all of the DV and CAC heroes thank you notes by years end. Keep an eye on your mailbox.
Today’s photo is a of a thank you card from www.gratitudedesigns.com I use these thank you cards because of their tie to helping children through www.flawlessfoundation.org More very good people helping children in need.
**Near ride’s end today, I met a great group of KSU students who called out for me to stop by for some water. I got to meet Sage, their dog, who was enjoying the game of “washers” they were playing. Thank you guys for making my last mile much easier.

There are just over one hundred days left to the Kindness Bicycle/Bus Tour to raise awareness about Domestic Violence and Childhood Sexual Abuse. I have decided to ride ten, 100 mile “Ride to Honor” by the end of this Tour. I would like to “Ride to Honor” in honor of someone you know. I will ride with a sign on the front of The Kindness Bicycle that mentions who you want me to “Ride to Honor.” I will send you a photo of The Kindness Bicycle and me from the ride you choose. You may even be able to pick a date that has some significance to you and that person. The person who I ride in honor of, should be someone who was affected by Domestic Violence or Childhood Sexual Abuse. These “Rides to Honor” are offered on a first come first served basis. The minimum offer of a “Ride to Honor” is $1 per mile. All money will be used to support the Kindness Bus Tour. Email me for information and to sign up for one of the 10 “Ride to Honor” dates. My email is [email protected] Please send this to someone you may think would like to be a part of one of these ten rides.