From Perth to Sydney on a bright-red Quad-tandem bike imported from Canada named Ruby: 4200km pedalled, 350 hours endured, over $115,000 funds raised, 11 schools reached, 10-wheel spokes changed, 3 wheels swapped, 6 tubes changed, numerous tears shed, countless lives touched, and one near-death experience. All to raise awareness for mental health fitness and suicide prevention through Gotcha4Life. Louise Ginn and her team turned faith, grit and passion into a journey of service.
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A stark evolution from the young Avondale graduate of 1991, who had just earned a Diploma in Primary teaching. While reflecting on her college days, Louise always had that passion for service: “I feel it’s something God placed in me, and Avondale certainly helped facilitate this.” She says, “Service is one of their core pillars, and there were many opportunities to be involved in meaningful service programs, which had a lasting impact on me.”
After graduating in 1991, Louise married fellow Avondale graduate Paul Ginn. Together, the newlyweds served for 12 months in South Korea as student missionaries, teaching English and Bible.
Returning to Australia, Louise taught at an Adventist school for 5 years and left to raise four boys amid frequent moves, including a challenging stint in Thailand, before settling back in Australia.
Choosing motherhood over a career, Louise recalls wanting to teach her kids the value of service: “I’ve always been service-oriented, and I wanted that for my boys,” she said. “I wanted them to understand how fortunate they were. And what better way to teach than by doing? I knew I was ready to get involved with a project again.”
Their neighbours frequently visited Vanuatu for mission work. Through that connection, Louise met Doralyn, a woman’s missionary leader, who shared a heartbreaking story about teenage pregnancies caused by abuse. As a young mum herself, Louise experienced shock and in disbelief by the stories, “How can anyone feel that they have no other option?” Louise prayed on the doorstep with Doralyn with the family, and asked God to lead them, and if God wanted to be a part of helping this cause, she ended “let’s see where God takes us from here”. She was willing to do something and put it in God's hands, asking for guidance on what she could do next.
Filled with compassion and love for strangers she’s never met, Louise and her neighbour, Jenny, began brainstorming ways they could help. “First thing I wanted to do was raise money, either through physical challenges or setting up a cupcake business.” The support of Memorial Church facilitates multiple fundraisers, believing in Louise’s ability to support her projects. Louise sought to do more than just raise funds.
Louise and Jenny initiated their own research and identified a genuine need to enhance the health and well-being of the local community in Vanuatu. Sharing their findings with ADRA, they agreed to fund a deeper needs analysis study. As a result of those findings, ADRA then partnered with Louise and Jenny to create the Blossom Project.
After raising $20,000 single-handedly, Louise continued to find creative ways to raise more money. As a family of avid bike riders, Louise wanted to involve her boys in the fundraising; inspired by his mum’s passion, 13-year-old Nathaniel wanted to be involved. The pair came up with a bold concept: 10 days, 1,000 km on a tandem bicycle. With the support of the Avondale Memorial church family, enough funds were raised to purchase the tandem bike. The local bike shop owner was inspired by their ride and supported the mother-son duo by selling the bike at cost. The inspiring event raised $50,000 for the Blossom Project.
Three years later, Nathaniel and Louise completed their tandem bike ride, calling it Ride4Rescue, raising $50,000 for the Blossom Project. Within the first couple of days of riding, Louise remembers a pivotal moment, “I remember God saying to me, ' This won’t stop here.’”
Her desire to use bike riding as a method of philanthropy steered Louise to reach out to a good friend, Tanya Lawrence.
Tanya is the co-founder of charity Restore One (founded in 2013). Operating currently in Cambodia, and the Thailand/Myanmar border, they support the restoration of communities that are experiencing poverty.
The two friends partnered on ‘Ride4Rescue’, and developed the Mountain bike charity ride from Canberra to Mount Kosciuszko. To date, over $600,000 has been raised across both charities.
In 2021, Louise’s youngest son, Matthew, wanted to break his brother's tandem bike record, with one condition: they would double the distance. This became the South 2 Centre bike ride from Ballarat to Uluru, where they raised $40,000 for CareFlight.
While seeking sponsorships for the ride, Louise recalls being prompted by God to ask her Chiropractor, Sonia, for sponsorship. Moved by the cause, Sonia shared her deeply personal story when her second child was born and fell critically ill. CareFlight provided urgent transport. Sponsoring the South 2 Centre ride, Sonia felt that she could honour her son.
“Doing all these fundraisers has really grown my faith in God,” Louise reflects, “It is amazing when you are willing.”
After a planned ride with Louise’s sister fell through, a surreal moment occurred when her friend Sonia shared that God had impressed on her heart to embark on a bike ride for another deep personal cause. As a practitioner, Sonia had seen her patients experience various mental health issues, and she felt impressed to fundraise for a mental health and suicide prevention charity.
Gotcha4life was chosen as their not-for-profit, and the plan was set in motion. At first, the two were training for a tandem ride across Australia, but the plan changed in 2024 when they met two sisters who were keen to share in the physical challenges to raise funds for mental health awareness.
Rachel and Anna – Avondale alumni – wanted to join Louise and Sonia on their ride, so the four planned to ride two tandem bikes across the country. Louise remembers, “I saw online a quad tandem bike and shared it with the girls; they all said it looks great”. Together, the four women embarked on an incredible world-first quad-tandem bike journey across Australia, raising over $115,000 for a cause close to their hearts: mental health and suicide prevention.
Louise’s extraordinary rides were built on everyday faithfulness. She transformed challenges into opportunities and served as an example not just to her boys but to the community around her. Her journey is a powerful reminder that making a difference in this world requires persistence and conviction.
So, what is next for Louise? “I get asked all the time, for me, I’ve always said, ‘God I’m willing,’ and I know God will provide.” She adds, “It’s amazing what God can do when you are willing. So, watch this space.”
