300 motorcycles participated under beautiful sunny skies and 24 degree temperatures!
Krysta Shields, Kevin O'Connor and Tyler Grant are the Ride for Mom.
Krysta is the manager of Blackjacks Roadhouse & Games Room. Kevin is an Alberta Sheriff and Tyler is the social media guy for Blackjacks catching as much of the action to share with everyone and helping to build the reputation they have as Alberta’s Best Bike Bar.
The Ride for Mom is one of the fastest growing events in Alberta and the reason is obvious, Blackjacks Roadhouse hosts the most incredible Two Wheel Tuesday Ride Nights anywhere in the province and they do it by supporting different causes and charities every week with their $6 burger sales and the best food and service around. (They work hard to serve so many in such a short space of time every Tuesday!)
There are a few other reasons this event is so fast growing - the Shields Family themselves are renowned around the northern half of Alberta for their giving natures and their sense of being in service to others. Just ask anyone who has benefited from their generosity at their free Christmas buffet where they give up their Christmas to feed others! (Never mind everything else they do and they do a lot of charitable work, every last one of them.)
Then there is the ride itself and everything you get because of the sponsors who supply the free breakfast, the free patches, the water at all the stops, and the signage. The sheriffs and the RCMP who help keep things safe, and the Victim Services offices who help out. You get a ton for your $30 entry fee including door prize tickets!
And finally, there is the cause. Ending Domestic Violence.
The Ride for Mom supports:
Edmonton Domestic Violence Shelters Engage (EDVSE) to help end domestic violence.
Six Edmonton-based organizations that advocate for survivors of domestic violence, for their organizations, and for the sheltering response: La Salle, Lurana Shelter Society, WIN House, Wings of Providence, Sage Seniors Safe House, and the Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters.
Because of the hard work of the board of directors, and Krysta Shields in particular, 100% of the proceeds raised go towards the needs of Edmonton Area shelters.
The Ride for Mom helps build strong families through education and awareness of exactly what the impact of domestic violence is on women and children.
Having all of the first responders and victim services all involved in this ride, brings the message home loud and clear that there are women and children that need all of the support they can get and that domestic violence needs to be stopped.
Guardians of the Children, BACA, Bullying Enns, UBAKA, Protection for the Unprotected, Bikers are Buddies and many other children’s rights advocacy groups were on hand lending their support to this cause. On hand were some of the regional ladies riding clubs like Babes on Bikes, Women in the Wind, & Pink Motor Sisters!
To the communities of Millet & Breton, your hospitality was amazing and East Parkland Bible Church I was told the time there was fantastic.
To the staff of Blackjacks Roadhouse and the volunteers from Brunch for Broads, the ATB, Klondike Insurance and the EDVSE, thank you for another amazing day!
To all who rode, thank you.
Whether you realize it or not, you probably know someone who is dealing with domestic violence and the support shown, the dialogue that is started is critical to ending it.
Ride for Mom https://rideformom.ca/
