Volunteering for Joy Rides

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Thank you for your interest in volunteering to be a trishaw guide and/or a support escort for Joy Rides. There are few volunteer opportunities that offer as much fun and satisfaction. Indeed, our guides are often as moved by the experience of giving the trishaw rides as the guests are in receiving them. However, as enjoyable as they are, the first priority is for the guests and guides to have a safe experience every time out. Volunteer training is the key to achieving this goal.

Before engaging in training, volunteers must be able to commit to a 3-hour window for each assignment. Typically, these are weekdays 9:30 AM-12:30 PM. This allows our residence facility partners to schedule a full morning or afternoon of rides without having to interrupt a session to swap out volunteers. (Afternoon and weekend hours are planned for the future.) Preferably, guides can be available for the same weekly time slot to encourage friendships with the guests and their families over the course of several rides. 

To ensure the safety and peace of mind of our passengers and their families, volunteers must be certified to perform in the role of trishaw guide and/or support escort.

In order to become a certified volunteer pilot, candidates must:

1. Be at least 21 years of age and possess a current drivers license.

2. Complete a Volunteer Information form.

3. Pass a background check. (Click here to download the form.) Return the completed form to the office of First Presbyterian Church along with a photocopy of the drivers license. Applicants will be disqualified if they have any criminal records, sex offenses, and/or repeated motor vehicle violations in their report. (First Presbyterian Church will assume the cost of the background investigation.)

4. Read completely, sign and submit the Joy Rides Volunteer Waiver Agreement.*

5. Complete the Cycling Savvy Basics online course, and submit a certificate of completion.* This course introduces the basics of safe traffic cycling techniques, and is most relevant to the role of the support escort. (Trainees are responsible for the registration fee.)

6. Log a total of 6 hours of road time (as both a trishaw pedaler and passenger, and as a support escort) supervised by one of our trained volunteer pilots. This includes a three hour training session covering handling and traffic skills with the rickshaw. Training sessions are typically conducted on Saturday mornings. Please contact  Hello@JoyRidesDunedin.org for more information on volunteer requirements or to schedule a volunteer pilot training session.

7. The trainee should satisfactorily perform all skills and be tested after training is completed. 

*All completed forms and certificates should be submitted to Hello@JoyRidesDunedin.org or delivered to the First Presbyterian Church Office during business hours.

Once all requirements are satisfactorily met, qualified volunteers will be listed on the Joy Rides Approved List of Volunteers and be eligible to sign up as guides or escorts.