January 12, 2015
As 2015 begins, the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) is looking forward to another year of great community partnerships and making worthwhile contributions to the people and places we serve.
Over the past year, RIPTA has been proud to lend support to a wide variety of worthy causes – whether it was filling a bus with teddy bears for Hasboro Children’s Hospital or collecting more than 1,500 pounds of food for the Rhode Island Community Food Bank.
RIPTA enthusiastically participates in projects aimed at enhancing Rhode Islanders’ quality of life such as “Bike to Work Day”, and helping collect electronic waste on Earth Day in an effort to keep contaminants out of the state landfill.
Educating the public on the environmental and economical benefits of public transportation is also an important part of RIPTA’s community efforts.
RIPTA continues to be a proud supporter of the Honor Flight program which transports World War II veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit their memorial and other key sites. RIPTA provides complimentary transportation to T.F. Green Airport for Rhode Island veterans from all branches of the military service on the day of their Honor Flight trips.
In December, RIPTA continued its tradition of participating in Rosa Parks Day by providing a bus for use in a reenactment of Ms. Park’s historic refusal to give up her seat on a segregated bus in Montgomery, Alabama.
Another important annual event is RIPTA’s support of “Feed 1,000”, a charitable event that provides a Sunday dinner, warm clothing and other essentials to Rhode Islanders in need.
RIPTA tries to forge new charitable partnerships every year, and in 2014 we were able to launch a successful toy drive for children who attend the West End Community Center in Providence.
“People are used to seeing our buses on the roads, and behind those buses are dedicated people who care about the communities where they live and work,” said Barbara Polichetti, Director of Public Affairs for RIPTA.
“Whether it’s employees rolling up their sleeves for blood drives or our mechanics happily donning pink to support the Gloria Gemma Breast Cancer Resource Foundation, there’s a lot of enthusiasm here for giving back to the community and helping others.”
RIPTA has created a short video on its Facebook page – www.facebook.com/RideRIPTA – to highlight some of the past year’s special community events.
Enjoy the ride.
For more information on schedules or other RIPTA services, please call 401-781-9400 or visit ripta.com.