Ride To Survive: A Cause That's Worth Fighting

Ride To Survive: A Cause That's Worth Fighting
Eryn Dion
News Staff Writer

GARDNER  Motorcyclists from all over New England will embark on a 70-mile Ride to Survive on Sunday, celebrating life and raising awareness for military-related suicides.

“We have high hopes for the day,” said Melida Arredondo, one half of the Arredondo Family Foundation that’s helping to organize the ride in conjunction with local resident Michelle Boynton.

Tied together by the Boston Marathon bombing, Ms. Boynton, Mrs. Arredondo and her husband, Carlos — best known for his cowboy hat and the iconic photograph of him rushing victim Jeff Bauman to an ambulance — have been working with the extensive and tight-knit survivor community to bring attention to the family’s foundation, which provides emergency funds for military families who have recently experienced a tragedy, as well as scholarships and counseling for siblings of fallen military men and women.

Ms. Boynton witnessed the 2013 Marathon bombings and, through the survivors network, came to know Mr. and Mrs. Arredondo and their foundation.

“We reached out to the survivor community and asked if there was anyone who could help with a means to fundraise,” said Mrs. Arred­ondo, who noted Ms. Boynton stepped up immediately, suggesting a motorcycle ride and partnership with the Montach­usett Veterans Outreach Center (MVOC) to raise money.

Although there was some initial hesitancy on Ms. Boynton’s end as to whether such a large-scale ride could be organized in less than a month, MVOC Outreach Coordinator Stephen Bassett said anything was possible, especially given with the center’s contacts and relationships with groups like Fire and Iron Motorcycle Club.

“When Michelle approach­ed me with the idea, she asked, “Can we put this together in such a short amount of time?’” he said. “My response was, ‘Absolutely.’” “Gardner is a very vet-frien­d­ly town,” he added. “There was no doubt in my mind we could pull this together.”

Kicking off from the Gard­ner Fish and Gun Club at 11 a.m., the Ride to Survive winds through southern New Hamp­shire, crossing through Keene, Dublin, Marlborough, Swanz­ey, Troy and Fitzwilliam, lasting an hour and a half before riders return to the club for a chicken barbecue.

Representatives from MVOC and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention will be at the ride doing intakes and providing immediate needs assessments for veterans.

Riders can register online through the event’s Facebook page or at the Fish and Gun Club from 9 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. Sunday.

The registration fee is $20 for riders and $10 per passenger, with all proceeds split between the Arredondo Family Foundation and local veterans service agencies.