As motorcycles zoomed around the streets of Chillicothe on Saturday, more than 100 bikers crisscrossed Ross County in support
of the Chillicothe DARE program.
The annual Larry Cox Memorial Poker Run set off mid-morning from Harley-Davidson of Chillicothe, and riders traveled to the Paint Creek Spillway, Huntington Township Fire Hall and Scioto Trail StatePark before heading back into town.
Chillicothe Police Officer Larry Cox was shot and killed while off duty as he pursued a robbery suspect in April 2005. The poker run benefits the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, a program dear to Larry.
"He just loved the kids and working with kids," said Roger Cox, Larry's father.
Larry worked with fifth-graders to complete the DARE program, but he maintained a close relationship with many students as they moved into middle and high school.
"He was always up to playagame of basketball, or any sport, just to keep them involved," Roger said.
This year, the Poker Run was moved to coincide with the Easyriders Motorcycle Rodeo in the hope of attracting more bikers. Poker Run volunteers conducted early registration on Thursday and Friday at the Ross County Fairgrounds as Easyriders attendees arrived.
DARE Officer Julie Preston said she's not sure how many new run attendees the move attracted, but the Easyriders Rodeo group has been a great friend to the poker run donating a gold-rush package to be raffled off at the rodeo to benefit the DARE fund.
"A gold-rush package is a free camping spot at the rodeo, with an early choice of the camping spot and a free wristband," Preston said. "We've had a lot of people get in on the raffle, so that's been really great."
With funds raised from that raffle, a raffle at the Harley-Davidson Headquarters and the poker run, Preston said she can buy teaching supplies for the DARE students.
At one time, many parent teacher organizations would chip in to help defray the costs, but lately Preston has had to pick up some of the expenses herself. She said the funds also will support the awards for essay contestwinners and the softball and baseball teams sponsored by DARE.
"We think it's important to stay involved and do these things for the kids," she said.
Many community members have stepped up to support the event. Alan Turley is one of those people. He said he never met Larry Cox but supports the mission and goal of the poker run each year by volunteering during registration and joining the run.
"I only really knew of Larry through his work with DARE," Turley said. "We never met, but this is a really good cause. It doesn't get much better."
He said the ride through the county is scenic, and he was looking forward to it, despite the heat.
"It's a lot of fun," he said. "I look forward to it every year." |
