Habitat for Humanity's Portage la Prairie Chapter welcomed some brothers and sisters into town for a meal and a rest last night.

Riders with the Cycle of Hope are making their way from British Columbia to Winnipeg to partake in the Jimmy Carter Work Project in Winnipeg as part of Canada's 150th.

Charlie Clifford with the Habitat Humanity Portage Chapter and Portage Mayor Irvine Ferris Irvine gave a short speech to all of the riders. Ferris presented them with lapel pins. (Photo by Aaron Wilgosh)

"A group of Minneapolis cyclists cycled into the Jimmy Carter Work Project in Winnipeg in 1993," says chair of the 2017 Cycle of Hope John Loewen. "That inspired a group of volunteers that decided to cycle to a Jimmy Carter work project next year. Two of those original twelve disciples are cycling with us now too, so it's a really special event for us. Here we are 24 years later since his visit, he's back, he rarely visits the same community twice, and this is the first time he's ever returned to a city outside of America. "

Charlie Clifford with the Portage la Prairie Chapter says they hear the Cycle of Hope was planning a trip through Portage and they decided to help them out by offering them dinner and breakfast before their final leg to Winnipeg. The bikers stopped in at PCI for a meal Wednesday night where they also unloaded all of their bicycles into the auto shop for the night.

John Loewen, Loraine Petkau, and Olenka Antymniuk with Cycle of Hope heading to Winnipeg. (Photo by Aaron Wilgosh)

"We're building two houses here in Portage of the 150 that are planned throughout Canada this year," says Clifford. "We are going to get started on them toward the end of July or the beginning of August, and hopefully, we'll have our two families into their homes before the end of the year."

Cycle of Hope has raised $280,000 so far, which John Loewen says is still growing. The riders will be taking off from Portage la Prairie Thursday morning at around 8 a.m. They'll receive a police escort from the Perimeter Highway to the site build in Winnipeg.