NEWPORT NEWS, Va. - More than 100 bikers left from Newport News Park on Sunday morning on a ride in support of a program that helps locate people with dementia and other conditions, should they go missing.
It was the ninth annual ride organized by the Newport News Sheriff's Office, with a roughly 90-minute route that included scenic areas on the Peninsula like Colonial Parkway and Yorktown Beach.
Each rider paid $20, with all funds going to a program called Project Lifesaver.
“Folks suffer from dementia or autism, they wander away. We outfit them with a device that we can quickly track them and normally, within 20 minutes or so, we usually recover someone," said Newport News Sheriff Gabe Morgan.
Morgan, who has a motorcycle of his own, was among the first riders in the long line.
Other groups that joined included American Legion posts that came with checks totaling $1,500. In all, the ride brought in over $3,000, Morgan estimated. Well above the $1,900 brought in by the 2022 ride.
He says it's all to ensure Project Lifesaver remains free for the caretakers who use it.
“I will tell you, I’ve had people in my family suffer from dementia and they weren’t in the area. It took days to find them. Here in Newport News, we’re committed to keeping this program free and this is one of the ways we keep it free," he told News 3.
Sheriff Morgan says around 75 people are currently enrolled in the program and it costs the Sheriff's Office around $300 a year to monitor each one.
Still, the sheriff insists there's room for more, should anyone need a little help taking care of the ones they love.
For more information on the Newport News Sheriff's Office Project Lifesaver program, click HERE.
