Have you noticed the green and white shuttle buses near the Tualatin WES station or the minivans with the yellow arrow near the Tualatin Commons Lake? What about the Tualatin Shuttle bus stop signs along Boones Ferry or Durham Rd? Those belong to the non-profit transportation organization Ride Connection! With a mission of linking accessible, responsive transportation alternatives with individual and community needs, Tualatin wouldn’t be the same without Ride Connection.
Introducing Rocky! (Publisher’s note: Rocky was featured in a previous Tualatin Life article, tinyurl.com/2sr8aep6) Rocky is one of Ride Connection’s outstanding volunteers. Every day, Rocky embodies his belief that seniors should be valued, supported and respected. After a long career of service in the military and law enforcement, Rocky was left with a disability that ruled out pursuing his career further. Without a second thought, he looked to serve his community in whatever capacity he was able.
For the past eight years, Rocky has been one of Ride Connection’s most reliable door-to-door volunteer drivers. Dedicated to supporting elders in his Tualatin community, he loves listening to his customers’ stories and having the opportunity to lift someone’s spirit. His customers love him too – regularly bringing him baked goods and inviting him to meet their pets – he always gives them treats! He often says he is lucky because he gets “paid by the smile.” A recent customer said, “[Giving a ride] may be simple to a lot of folks, but it truly is life-changing.”
As a door-to-door volunteer, Rocky sets his own schedule and works with the Tualatin program staff for his assigned customers each day. While some volunteers choose to drive their own vehicles, Rocky drives a Ride Connection minivan equipped with a lift around town. For an average weekly volunteer, Ride Connection can serve close to 200 more customers every year in Tualatin alone.
And Rocky didn’t stop at providing door-to-door rides. He enrolled in Ride Connection’s Ride Together mileage reimbursement program, which allows him to drive his neighbors in the evenings and weekends as well. Available for older adults and people with disabilities, the Ride Together program allows riders to recruit family members, friends, or neighbors to be their drivers. Customers and drivers schedule their rides on their own, and drivers are reimbursed for miles driven.
But what about those green and white shuttles? They are part of Ride Connection’s Community Connector program, which has served Tualatin for over a decade. While most of Ride Connection’s services are for seniors and people with disabilities, Community Connectors are open to the public and connect residents to grocery stores, community hubs, and transportation stations. You can even call Ride Connection to schedule an off-route pick-up or drop-off within a half mile of the route!
The best part? Ride Connection’s services are free, thanks in part to Ride Connection volunteers like Rocky. You, too, can make a difference in someone’s life with a simple ride! Whether you’re ready to get behind the wheel or know a friend or family member eager to serve their community, you can join their vital team today by visiting their website www.rideconnection.org or emailing volunteer@rideconnection.org to learn more about driving your community.
