Ride for Kids® ends season on high note in Tampa Bay
November 7, 2011
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Trinity is enthusiastic about the Tampa Bay ride.
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The 2011 Ride for Kids® season drew to a close yesterday as the Tampa
Bay event raised $37,715 for the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation®
(PBTF).
Windy and warm conditions greeted the 290 riders and
other supporters who gathered at the Walter Heinrich Training Center in
Lithia to honor Ride for Kids® “stars” Chiara, Gina, Trinity, Andriana,
Michael, and Corey. These brain tumor survivors led the ride through
central Florida farmland, then talked about their lives during the
Celebration of Life program.
Gratitude was the theme of the day.
“Thank you for coming, people like you save lives,” said 11-year-old
Chiara. Added Gina’s mother, Linda, “Your hard work has given our
children longer lives and a brighter future.”
Dr. Stacie
Stapleton, director of pediatric neuro-oncology at All Children’s
Hospital in St. Petersburg, thanked the riders on behalf of patients and
researchers.
Motorcyclists fuel research that makes a difference. The leading fundraisers in Tampa Bay were:
- Individual: Darleen North, $2,487
- Motorcycle club/chapter: Hap’s Gulf Coast Riders, $11,515
- Motorcycle business: Hap’s Cycle Sales, $13,850
Donated Ride for Kids® drawing prizes went to Mike Waldman (Honda
motorcycle); Alton Ayers (AGV helmet); Maria Orihuela (Dunlop tire);
Douglas White (Tourmaster luggage); and Fred Milito (Cardo Systems
headset).
Many thanks went to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s
Department for providing the site and the escort bikes, and to the
event’s volunteer organizers, led in 2011 by Jim and Rebecca Iverson,
Hayden and Anne Cameron, and Norm and Margaret Van Dame. Next year’s
Tampa Bay Area Ride for Kids® is on Sunday, Nov. 4.
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 ©.
