HAMPTON, Va. — The group 'We Are Codi's Voice' is hosting a motorcycle ride in honor of Codi Bigsby, a then-4-year-old boy from Hampton who was reported missing in January of last year.
The ride will take place on Sunday, July 30: 545 days after little Codi disappeared.
"The 757 has done it again. We have done it again. We have never let Codi down. And we're not going to start now," said Nancy Strickland, the founder of 'We Are Codi's Voice.'
Named 'A Ride for Justice, Codi Bigsby,' the event will start at 5715 Richmond Rd, in the Food Lion parking lot connected to the Williamsburg Outlet Mall. Riders will leave promptly at 11 a.m.
Along the ride, the group will stop at the well-known 'Codi fence' located outside of Codi's old home in Hampton off of Old Buckroe Road. That is where Strickland invites community members to come out and support the riders.
"Codi is our baby and we will never give up on him," she said. "And the riders need to be supported as well. So if [people] could come out and have signs and whatnot, that would be wonderful."
The ride will conclude with a cookout at the Retired Armed Forced Club at 398 Union St in Hampton.
"We're doing a big cookout. We're having a slideshow of Codi. We're doing certificates of appreciation," explained Strickland.
The group will also sell t-shirts and collect donations in Codi's name. Strickland says all donations will go directly to the National Center For Missing and Exploited Children and will not go through her.
"There are other children [who] are still missing as well," she said. "It's just to put that awareness out there... these kids are missing."
Strickland is expecting over 100 people to attend the event and says she has people coming from out of state. She says new riders and volunteers are welcome.
"It warms my heart because it's not just me that has fallen in love with this baby," she said. "It's an entire community. It's the entire 757 and elsewhere that has fallen in love with Codi Bigsby and wants justice for Codi Bigsby."
The ride comes as Codi's father, Cory Bigsby, was recently let out of jail on bond. Shortly after Codi went missing, Cory was taken into custody on several child neglect and abuse charges unrelated to his son's disappearance.
However, just recently in June, Cory was charged with the murder of little Codi.
Cory is expected to stand trial for those murder charges sometime in October.
News 3 reporter Penny Kmitt spoke directly over the phone with the Bigsby family. They said they have no comment on Sunday's event. They continue to maintain Cory's innocence.
