The Dallas/Fort Worth Ride for Kids® celebrated its seventh anniversary by raising $115,024 for the PBTF October 4, 2009.
Drizzly, brisk weather greeted the 150 participants at Grapevine Mills Mall outside of Dallas. The motorcyclists and their police escort went through picturesque north Texas, passing horse farms and pastureland along the way.
Back at the mall, the Celebration of Life program honored seven Ride for Kids® “stars,” including 3-year-old Josephine. Rachel T., now 26, spoke about being diagnosed with cancer as a teenager.
“Ten years ago I had a tumor the size of an orange,” she said. “Now it is the size of a dime … thanks to you we have options that make me feel like going on.”
The group also heard from Dr. Jeffrey C. Murray, a neuro-oncologist at Cook Children’s Medical Center.
The first-place fundraisers were:
- Individual: Sam Caine, $16,480
- Chapter/Club: Caden Johnson Memorial Fund, $29,176
- Motorcycle Business: Maxim Honda, $24,413
Angel Bright of Haslet, Texas, won the grand prize, a new Honda motorcycle.
Special thanks went to the event’s all-volunteer task force, led this year by Gary and Julie Touchstone, Jeff Latimer, Fetch Daniel, Gen White, and Pam and Shane Sutton.