The Dream Team is a Des Moines-based non-profit organization that provides young adults with opportunities to build confidence, set goals, and create a healthy lifestyle through mentor-based interactions centered around bicycling.
The Dream Team is a five-month program that partners young people with adult mentors to provide an opportunity to build relationships, achieve personal growth, and learn life skills. The program culminates with a week-long bicycle ride across Iowa and the incredible feeling of achievement of riding from the Missouri River to the Mississippi River. The young adults in the program build confidence and self- esteem while learning that healthy goals can be attained with sufficient planning and preparation.
In March, a team of 50-60 teenagers start their 5-month journey to RAGBRAI, a week-long bike ride across Iowa that occurs each July. The riders work with caring volunteers to set goals, work hard, and dream big! Windsor employees, Myron Lee and Sompeth Keomany, have both volunteered with the organization for the past few years. The organization is completely supported by volunteers as well as corporate sponsors, including Windsor.
At the beginning, the Des Moines youth that range in age from 12-18 are given a bike and helmet. Mentors, like Myron and Sompeth, work with the young people to increase their bike-riding endurance, build self-confidence, and develop skills to face life struggles. Some of the kids that sign up don’t even know how to ride a bike, so they start with the basics and build from there. The program starts in March at the Des Moines downtown YMCA and progresses to bike riding from April- July.
They work with the kids and train 3 times per week riding their bicycles and increasing the number of miles they ride each week. They also provide the children with tent camping skills as that is what they will do during the 7 nights while they ride their bicycles across the state. During these five months, the kids become strong and ready for RAGBRAI by the end of July! Once the youth complete RAGBRAI, they have earned the bike that was given to them. The kids are welcome to come back year after year and use the bike that they’ve earned during their first experience with the organization.
The bicycle is used as a tool to inspire and motivate young people, encourage lifelong wellness, and build confidence through accomplishment. Completing a 400+ mile bike ride across the state of Iowa gives the participants a tangible sense of achievement, as well as a framework for setting and achieving life goals.
Thank you to Myron and Sompeth for volunteering their time and sharing their skills. They are making a seemingly impossible task possible for many Des Moines young people. The inner strength and confidence these young people gain through this experience will impact their lives forever.