PEORIA, Ill. — Roughly 200 motorcycles have left Peoria, headed south to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital Thursday, many of them from the Peoria area.
St. Jude Rides was started in Peoria 16 years ago by Mike McCoy and Eric Wilson.
Local rider Dave Gauf is back for his second ride for St. Jude this year.
Gauf tells WMBD News that local riders are took off from Walters Brothers Harley Davidson at 7 a.m. Thursday, before meeting up with satellite riders down the road.
“They’ve got satellite runs coming from Princeton (Illinois) and one from, I believe Iowa, will meet with us in Dyersburg (Tennessee) Friday morning, then satellite runs from Chicago and one from around St. Louis will meet with us too into one group,” Gauf says.
St. Jude Rides are also coming from Tennessee and Alabama.
Each rider commits to raising at least $1,000 for St. Jude to take part in the ride. If they’ve got a passenger along, it’s $1,500.
Last year, St. Jude Rides raised about $774,000 for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, helping to make sure no family is ever asked to pay for treatment. So far this year, the riders have raised at least $701,000 from Peoria supporters alone.
This year’s overall fundraising goal across all riders and donors is expected to at least match last year’s goal, Gauf says.
To learn how you can give to St. Jude, click HERE.
