NORFOLK, Neb. (KCAU) — An annual motorcycle trip in Nebraska is raising awareness about children’s mental health.
The Eagle Riders collected letters to deliver to Lincoln. The sound of bikes echoed through Norfolk’s Ta Ha Zuka Park as the Cross-Nebraska Pony Express Ride, aimed at children’s mental health, took a short break before heading to Wayne.
“Each stop may vary depending on the time schedule,” said coordinator David Locke. “Sometimes the time between stops may be shorter than at other stops.”
The purpose of this ride is to spread the message that mental health is important to everyone’s overall health. The riders will pick up letters from children in each town they stop in and deliver them to Parliament House in Lincoln on Saturday.
“This gives us the opportunity to say, ‘This is what we need,'” Locke said. “People need to be aware of it. It’s out there and it’s happening. It can’t be ignored.”
The ride began in 2007, with two riders going to each town and two more riders taking turns heading to the next town. This is to mimic the method the real Pony Express used to deliver mail in the 1800s.
The number of rides has increased each year, with an average of 11 to 13 riders traveling between towns. Some people ride the entire route, while others only ride part of it.
“They’re devoting all of their time, all of their money to lodging, food and gas,” said event coordinator Holly Stevens. “You have to have heart and you have to be dedicated. That’s who we are as riders.”
The ride started in Omaha on Wednesday and ended in Scottsbluff that night. The car then headed to Kearny on Thursday night, stopping in several towns. After stopping in Norfolk and Wayne on Friday, they spent the night in Fremont.
Riders will head to Lincoln early Saturday afternoon to deliver the letters they’ve collected.
“That’s our goal, and that’s to make sure that every member of Congress in Lincoln knows that there are people across the state of Nebraska who care about this issue,” Locke said.
Organizers say they’ve collected between 6,000 and 8,000 letters over the 17 years of the ride.
This year’s letter will be delivered to the interim director of behavioral health at the state Department of Health and Human Services at the state Capitol on Saturday at 1:30 p.m.
