Cops Cycling for Survivors Scheduled to Stop in Huntingburg Tuesday

Huntingburg - With the 1,000-mile cycling journey expected to arrive in Huntingburg on Tuesday, WITZ's Gene Kuntz spoke with local rider Jeff Jessee.

Beginning on July 12th, Cops Cycling for Survivors departed Indianapolis behind a police escort, headed for Richmond. In two days, the cyclists found themselves in South Bend via Angola. The group has turned south and is scheduled to make it to Huntingburg on July 20th.

Local rider, and former Forest Park Principal, Jeff Jessee explained why officers, and this ride, hold a special place in his heart.

"My brother is a State Trooper,  my brother-in-law is a State Trooper, and in my career as a high school principal, police officers were always my best friend," Jessee said. "If something tragic at school happened, it was a police officer that came and checked on me to see if I was okay."

Though he was familiar with the event, Jessee was unaware that civilians could partake until six years ago. 

"I ran into them at Rings & Wings, and at that time I didn't know that I could be a part of it as a civilian," Jessee said. "Then two years ago Chad Dick, another wonderful State Trooper in Jasper, asked me about it, he knew I'd been bike riding a lot. I just jumped on it."

Though, on the surface, the event may seem like a community-building bike ride - it has a much deeper meaning.

"To honor the memory of those who were killed in the line of duty," Jessee said. "Meeting the parents, the husbands, wives, kids of those fallen officers - that has tugged at my heart chain a lot harder than I thought it would. It is truly an honor for me to be a part of this organization."

All of the money raised by Cops Cycling for Survivors goes to the families of fallen officers.

Donations are still being taken at: https://www.copscycling4survivors.org/