Peggy Mishoe | Optimists, police host rodeo to increase safety for kids on bikes
Working to keep kids safer on bicycles, tricycles and other wheels, on computers and in the water, Grand Strand Optimist Club members will host the annual Safety on Wheels and Bike Rodeo on Oct. 17.
“I think it helps to educate the children to a point where they can pass it on to their siblings and they remember,” said Pat Henry, who is chairing the event.
There will be bike decorating, a parade, a bike auto cross course, and much more, including Conley the Magician, who will be strolling the parking lot entertaining the kids and adults. The girls in Girl Scout Troop 995 will be handing out water.
The mission of the Grand Strand Optimist Club is to “Bring out the best in our youth, our communities and ourselves.”
The club partners with the Myrtle Beach Police Department and Fire Department, a local bicycle shop, and it invites others to help sponsor the event. State Farm Insurance has donated to the Safety on Wheels and Bike Rodeo, 9 to 11 a.m. in the parking lot of the First Presbyterian Church at 3810 Robert Grissom Parkway in Myrtle Beach.
It is free and children of all ages are welcome. They should take their tricycles or bicycles. Representatives of Beach Bike will inspect each child’s cycle and will do minor repairs, if needed. Children will also get new helmets, purchased by the club, as long as the helmet supplies last. Numerous items, which include bicycles and tricycles, have been donated and will be raffled.
Officers in the Myrtle Beach Police Department’s Bicycle Patrol unit will lead a parade and teach safety as they go. Crime prevention officers will teach Internet safety. Firefighters will fit and distribute the helmets. Children will also see and learn about fire trucks and fire equipment.
Club member Gene Hudson, a local attorney and the owner of Myrtle Beach Life Guard, Inc, will be there with some equipment and lifeguards to talk about water safety. They will explain why different colored flags are put out at the ocean; provide information about rip currents, stingrays and other dangers, and will tell about past ocean rescues. They will also arrangements for free swimming lessons for children and adults next spring.
New York Life representatives will be there with fingerprinting kits for kids. Parents or guardians will get the kits, and they can decide whether to give their child’s fingerprints to their police departments later.
Proceeds will be donated to Horry County charities that help children. During the 2014-15 year, the club has donated to Fostering Hope, the Children’s Recovery Center, Miracle League, Backpack Buddies and Sea Haven.
Henry said the Grand Strand Optimist Club is a “working” club, and while all members don’t attend every meeting, they are constantly collecting funds or goods, through fundraisers or individually, to be given to people in the community who are in need.
This story was originally published October 14, 2015 at 12:06 PM with the headline "Peggy Mishoe | Optimists, police host rodeo to increase safety for kids on bikes."