The community is invited enjoy great food, live entertainment and a chance to win a 2020 Harley Davidson Low Rider and other prizes, all while supporting a good cause at the 14th annual Harley of Hope raffle event from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. in the parking lot of Ace Hardware on West Washington Street in Bradford.
Raffle tickets for the annual event, organized by Kids and Cancer, are one for $20 or three for $50 and will be available for purchase at Ace Hardware or by calling Dave Geitner at 814-331-8427 up until and during the event or until sold out.
Additionally, Kids and Cancer is offering a package for $100, which includes a hat with an embroidered Kids and Cancer logo on it, 2020 Kids and Cancer Zippo lighter, 2020 Kids and Cancer pin, as well as one Kids and Cancer Harley of Hope raffle ticket. Those interested in purchasing a package can email kidsandcancerbenefitrun@gmail.com.
The limited edition Zippo lighters will also be sold for $30 at the event, while T-shirts will be $20 and hats will be $15.
Winners for the raffle will be pulled at 5 p.m., with first place winning the 2020 Harley Davidson Low Rider; second place, a weekend extravaganza in the Bradford area; and third place, a $250 gift certificate for Harley Davidson of Jamestown, N.Y.
A live auction will also take place at this point, with numerous items including a one-of-a-kind Case bowie knife along with a Zippo lighter in a display case. Giveaways will also be held throughout the day, in partnership with Ace Hardware.
Dave Geitner, event coordinator, said the Legion will be cooking up hotdogs and hamburgers, with Brick Oven Pizza and others also setting up food tents with food and refreshments for sale. Additionally, a live DJ will be providing live entertainment, and members of ABATE and the Legion will be leading rides to Rimrock and Kinzua Bridge starting at 11 a.m., taking off every half hour.
“The last ride will be at 2 p.m. so everyone has time to get back before the auction and drawing,” explained Geitner. “We figure it will be a two-hour ride. You don’t have to have a motorcycle to participate — people are welcome to bring their cars to show them off as well.”
Traditionally, the group also holds an annual Kids and Cancer benefit run, though the 23rd annual run had to be canceled due to COVID-19 concerns. The group is planning to host the next run on the fourth Saturday of July 2021. Follow the “Kids and Cancer Benefit” Facebook page or sign up for email updates at https://kidsandcancerbenefitrun.com/.
Those in attendance to the event are asked to respect social distancing guidelines and, most importantly, have fun.
With the exception of the cost of the motorcycle, all proceeds from the event go towards medical bills and gas cards for families with children battling cancer, along with annual donations to medical facilities such as Bradford Regional Medical Center, Olean General Hospital, St. Jude in Pittsburgh and Buffalo, N.Y. and Shriners Hospitals.
“We’ve donated around $550,000 so far this year to individual families and medical facilities,” noted Geitner.
Families who want to request help from Kids and Cancer can visit https://kidsandcancerbenefitrun.com/ and click on “Request Aid.” Geinter explained that families that apply for assistance need not be from the local area.
Those interested in giving a monetary donation to help the mission of Kids and Cancer can send them to Kids and Cancer Benefit, P.O. Box 1299, Bradford, PA 16701.
“No dollar amount is too small or too big and it all goes toward helping kids out,” Geitner said in conclusion.
