The 11th annual Utica Ride for Kids® brought in $102,745 on a rainy Sunday morning. Five local brain tumor patients led the police-escorted ride, which traveled through the deeply wooded terrain of the Adirondack foothills before reaching Old Forge Pavilion in the Town of Webb.
There the 425 participants gathered to celebrate the children, including PBTF scholarship recipient Shereen, 17, and Mackenzie, 12.
Connie, mother of 9-year-old Hunter, thanked the crowd for their efforts. "You're the reason Hunter is still here, because he was and is part of a research program," she said.
VIPs in attendance included U.S. Rep. Michael Arcuri.
The top individual fundraisers, with $11,550 in donations, were Peter and Jill Weidman of Queensbury, N.Y. They also won the grand prize, a new Honda motorcycle.
GWRRA members from around the region pooled their funds to make GWRRA the top fundraising club/chapter, raising $44,778. Customers of Sportline Power Products brought $12,925 to make it the top motorcycle business.
A big hand goes to the local task force and event volunteers, led by Ken and Kathy Sweatman and Steve and Karen Clary.
