ROCHESTER COMMUNITY INCLUSIVE ROWING INC

In December of 2019 a new dedicated sculling facility in support of the mission stated above was completed. please visit us onour website at www.https://www.rochestercommunityinclusiverowing.org/rowers to watch videos and read stories of our mission coming to fruition.
You can donate at our website or at Facebook - we prefer our webpage. Facebook at Rochester Community inclusive Rowing
RCiR successfully over 560 sculling events during the pandemic of 2020 from June 15 through October of 2020. A new dock grant was obtained and ordered and is set for installation in April of 2021 providing easier and safer access to the water. A special thanks to our LEAD supporter the IDE Dealerships, who also generously agreed to support the expansion of adaptive rowing for Veterans and other members of our community with disabilities and challenges through a multi-year philanthropic relationship with RCiR.

RCiR successfully built it's adaptive and inclusive sculling center at 20 Black Creek just 200 meters west of the Genesee River at Jefferson Road. “NAMING RIGHTS” are still available! Preliminary plans of 3 bays and 60 – 80 sculling shells of storage (5180 sq. ft.), bathrooms and showers and a year round fitness area of up to 1920 sq. ft. have been DELIVERED
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http://wxxinews.org/post/watch-roc-rowing-club-takes-purpose-team-sports...

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(One critical note, RCiR is not a club, rather a charitable 501c3 community asset committed to collaborating across the entire community to stimulate rowing for all, and to remove barriers to the water for people with challenges/disabilities)

Collaboration continues and new collaborations too!

• Through the generosity and collaboration of Pittsford Crew and the Pittsford Indoor Rowing Center, RCiR was able to introduce over 15 veterans from Rochester as well as the greater Utica area to sculling from January through April of 2016. In July, the visitors from the Mohawk Valley then invited RCiR to an immersion day of sculling with veterans at Camp Sitrin in New Hartford, NY. This activity has spawned a $21,000.00 grant application to expand the number of sculling shells in 2017 thereby enabling RCiR to offer adaptive sculling week days in the Mohawk Valley region. All of this triggered by the largess of Pittsford Crew and the PIRC! THANK YOU!

• RCiR began pursuing deeper insights as to why sculling is positively impacting Veterans with PTSD and TBI from a neuro/psychological perspective with rehabilitation specialists at Sitrin in New Hartford, NY and Utica College.

• Coordinated acquisition of 2 single rowing shells for 2 disabled Veterans at no cost to the Veterans. A huge shout out to the folks and Trustees of Future Care Planning Services Community Pooled Trust!

• Coordinated acquisition of 1 new Concept 2 erg for a developing young sculler with Cerebral Palsy at no cost to the young man. Another huge shout out to the folks and Trustees of Future Care Planning Services Community Pooled Trust! This certainly beats a Hippopotamus for Christmas.

• RCiR was designated the Greater Rochester Adaptive Rowing and Freedom Rows organization by USRowing in 2016.

• Many thanks to the Genesee Rowing Club for housing RCiR for over 4 “years in a row” – pun intended – the support and openness of your rowing members was HUGE in our success, it cannot be stated enough how important it is to create a welcoming environment for all!

• Many thanks to the Genesee Waterways Center for granting storage and access so one of our Veterans could more easily gain access to the river via the ramps and proximity of the boathouse to the river.

In addition to serving our Veterans with disabilities, RCiR continuously expands the populations of rowers to include youth with various autistic challenges as well as our initial youth the with the challenge of cerebral palsy.

• RCiR continued its’ collaboration with OASIS Adaptive Sports to acquire Veterans who want to row as well as beginning a relationship with the Veterans Outreach Center (VOC) on South Ave. The Executive Director of the VOC and his wife came out and were sculling in the quad in about an hour! 2017 will see more outreach and participation from VOC!

• Our volunteer base has strengthen with regard to their understanding and utilization of the Jim “Joy” method of sculling. Tee shirts with instructions on the back for your sculler behind you are now available.

• RCiR continued its support to other rowing regattas across the community by loaning of timing equipment and course buoys, etc.

Equipment Assets Added

RCiR successfully raised nearly over $200,000 of cash and another $200,000 in services and materials from across the community while securing a construction loan that became a $180,000 mortgage from Canandaigua National Bank for the new sculling facility.

The NY State Dept of Environmental Conservation named RCiR "neighbors" at 20 Black Creek and they have shared their survey documents and have asked RCiR to sign (and we did) a Voluntary Stewardship Agreement giving RCiR water and dock access in return for helping to care for the area.

The IDE Dealerships continues their powerful support each month so if you need a new car - please VISIT them "in Penfield" and tell Rich Ide RCiR sent you.
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A belated thank you to Phillips Lytle LLC for their pro bono legal support to the foreclosure process of 20 Black Creek making us the owners.

To the volunteers that supported our rowing all summer and fall many thanks! With our new sculling center the numbers of people we can serve will increase each year.

None of this would have been possible without incredible support from so many - much thanksgiving from RCiR to all.