THUNDER BAY -- Ryan Lancaster is parking a converted school bus in Thunder Bay this weekend, the halfway point in his cross-country journey to identify and raise money for projects that will have a beneficial impact on local communities.
The 32-year-old Kelowna, BC man was working in an electronics store when he decided "it was time to do something purposeful" with his life. At the same time, he had always wanted to tour Canada, so travelling the country in support of meaningful projects allowed him to combine the two aspirations.
His goal is to jumpstart projects that can create a powerful community impact. "The possibilities of these passion projects are endless, and the power of helping these people is exponential," he says.
Lancaster quit his job and sold his house before embarking on the trip from BC to Newfoundland, and back.
He calls it The Million Dollar Bus Project because that's how much money he hopes to raise.
Some of the funds will be collected through a crowdfunding campaign, but most will be raised by selling one-inch-square spaces on the outside of the bus for $10 apiece.
As he left Winnipeg heading for Thunder Bay on Friday afternoon, Lancaster had sold a total area of about six square feet.
The squares contain donors' names, photos, favourite inspiring quotes or business branding.
He came up with a creative way to acquire the bus in the first place: trading a "Canada" button for something slightly more valuable, then trading that item, and repeating the cycle until he ended up with an old school bus.
The bus has been converted for use as a mobile home and office for the 18-month expedition.
In an interview with tbnewswatch.com, Lancaster said that as he travels from city to city, he's "looking for really interesting projects that we can highlight some way and connect into the community. Maybe give them a boost of awareness and resources while we're in town."
On the return journey next year, he said, "Hopefully we'd actually be able to partner with projects, maybe with one that we found along our journey here, or maybe through a connection that we've made, and that we can actually fundraise for."
Back in Kelowna, Lancaster's already raised $6,000 for Okanagan Makerspace, a facility Lancaster describes as a hub for people to launch their own passion projects out of.
In Thunder Bay this weekend, he's hoping to meet with community-oriented people, individuals with a drive for a project that serves a useful purpose.
In terms of sponsors, he'd like to meet anyone who's got a business and would like to attach themselves to a positive social impact enterprise.
Since leaving Kelowna, Lancaster said, he's met amazing people doing amazing things for their communities.
He called the venture "just the greatest way I can imagine living my life."
Members of the public can submit an idea for a worthy project at his website.
