Houston, Triangle Area Ride for Kids® events close in on $445,000
May 2, 2011
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Houston Ride for Kids® star Josh (left) gets ready
to roll. |
Motorcyclists in Texas and North Carolina combined to raise $444,967 for
the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation® (PBTF) on May 1.
Houston
heats up the season
The 19th Houston Ride for Kids® set a fundraising record this year, beating
its previous totals with $335,043 in donations for the PBTF.
With MotoGP champion Kevin Schwantz in the lead, the riders traveled
from the civic center in Humble through rural areas, making two sweeping U-turns
that gave them a chance to see long columns of bikes.
When they returned for an awards ceremony and celebratory program, the
crowd of 1,150 cheered the accomplishments of Houston’s 18 Ride for Kids® stars —
Calvin, Cesar, Daniel, Darla, Ethan, Garrett, Jake, Javier, Josh, Kaitlyn, Laura,
Leon, Michael A., Michael G., Nick, Noah, Tobin, and Victor.
Many of the children spoke, as did a parent and a pediatric oncologist.
“We have made progress in surgery, but we need more people like you to
help us raise money,” said Dr. Jack Su of Texas Children’s Hospital. “We need a
breakthrough and we need to work harder to find a cure.”
Houston’s top fundraisers were:
- Individuals: Steve
and Judy Ferguson, $30,668
- Club/chapter: GWRRA
TX-C, $79,267
- Motorcycle
business: Northwest
Honda, $207,871
Congratulations to the winners of drawing prizes from Ride for Kids®
sponsors: Maurice Maness (Honda motorcycle); David Southwell (Dunlop tire); Everett
Hunt (AGV helmet); David and Petie Lebanowski (Tourmaster gift certificate);
and Rick and Sherry Lowe (Cardo Scala Rider headset).
The Houston Ride for Kids® was made possible by the enormous efforts of
local volunteers. Leading the team were Ronnie Lunsford, Steve and Judy
Ferguson, David and Petie Lebanowski, and Debbie and Britt Grieger.
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Sawyer enjoys his first Ride for Kids® near Raleigh,
N.C.
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Triangle
rides for research
May 1 was a beautiful day for riding and research near Raleigh, N.C., as
760 participants brought $109,824 in donations to the eighth Triangle Area Ride
for Kids®.
The riders left from the White Oak Recreation Area at Jordan Lake State
Park for a countryside tour of Chatham, North Chatham, Pittsboro and Cary. The
Celebration of Life program after the ride honored brain tumor survivors Cameron,
Chase, Cheryl, Forrester, Hannah, Isaiah, Jamilyn, Travis, Sawyer, Shango, and
Tami.
“No one should have to watch their child go through this,” said Shango’s
mom, Cina. “We are one of the lucky ones because he is still here.”
The group also heard from Dr. Oren Becher, a researcher at the PBTF
Institute at Duke University Medical Center. Another special guest was brain
tumor survivor Bob Dumas of Bob and the Showgram on G105.
The event’s leading fundraisers were:
- Individual: Roy
Crowder (Team Crowder), $6,312
- Club/chapter:
Bayer Crop Science, $28,206
- Motorcycle
business: Triangle Cycles, $33,327
Thanks to our Ride for Kids® sponsors for donating the drawing prizes
for Roy Crowder (Honda motorcycle); Roland Cargill (Dunlop tire); Alan Sturts
(AGV helmet); Wink Foster (Tourmaster luggage); and Matthew Christiana (Cardo
Scala Rider headset).
Hard work by a multitude of volunteers was essential to the success of
this event. This year’s organizers were led by Hope Pickard, Richard and Linda
Berner, and Roland Cargill.
Ride for Kids®
302 Ridgefield Ct.
Asheville, NC 28806
828-665-6891
800-253-6530
828-665-6894 (fax)
e-mail: info@rideforkids.org
website: rideforkids.org
All materials of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation® and Ride for Kids® contained herein or elsewhere are copyrighted ©.
