The Riders of Riverside

By Ron Rice

When I met Pam Hardy and Adelle Stokes, the founders of the Riverside Riders, I had no idea at that time that I would one day call these residents my idols! Yet, here I am today sharing their story with the world and how they have transformed not only the lives of their fellow neighbors but mine as well. 

In 2017, Pam and Adelle came to the Riverside Park Recreation Center to offer an opportunity for residents to form their own local bike club. Actually, what they called it was a “social club with bikes.” They are both Riverside born and raised, and they wanted to share their passion of bike riding to anyone that was interested.

About nine people showed up and you could see the interest in their eyes as they listened to the pitch. What made it feel more special was that you could clearly feel their love for the Riverside neighborhood and how much they wanted to give back to the neighborhood in their own way. I was new to community service back then, so I learned a lot about being intentional when you speak to others from that meeting. They also made it free for anyone and they themselves didn’t even ask for a single dime to run this program. 

Even though I didn’t ride due to knee injuries, I still wanted to experience what they were bringing, so I followed them through social media and listened at neighborhood meetings, living vicariously through their stories. They rode every week and took folks to parts of the city that they had never been to before. Plus, they showed how all our trails in the Near Northwest linked up in some way or another and connected us to the rest of the city. This fact alone really excited the participants because it took away the “isolation” feeling that a lot of residents felt from that area.

It was at this point that I asked them to contribute to the Near Northwest DIP-IN efforts to improve and expand physical activity in our area. I wanted them to keep doing what they were doing and help us spread good health and good information to as many folks as we could through their programming.

As it turned out, they were also looking for ways to spread a healthier message to their neighbors, and as they learned more about DIP-IN, they not only accepted an opportunity to have us support them but they also both joined our Near Northwest Steering Committee. In this way, they could lead in yet another way in determining healthier outcomes for our community. The Steering Committee unanimously voted “yes” to financially support their program (which turned out to be the first funding source for their program) and to welcome them to the team. 

From there it has LITERALLY been a “ride” with the riders. Now representing both the community and DIP-IN, their newly named program, Healthier Souls with the Riverside Riders became an even bigger blessing to everyone. You cannot find a better grassroots representation of the DIP-IN message or any message for that matter than you could with these ladies.

They came out strong and determined to let the world know that diabetes is a real factor in our lives and that you CAN do something about it. That what you do doesn’t have to be hard. Or by yourself. That we are in this together and we can show you how to have fun taking care of yourself. That we can help you get your loved ones that you may have struggled to get moving, moving! That no matter where or what, hurdles have only one purpose: to be jumped over!

The riders have taken the DIP-IN message to all parts of the city with their enthusiasm and their consistency. They have even traveled all the way to California biking events wearing our shirts and telling folks about what DIP-IN has done for the community. What seemed to some like something ordinary has been nothing short of extraordinary.

I look at their social media and I see someone new joining their rides every time they post. Even better is when you see those participants riding on their own without the riders as a guide because they have been taught how to be safer on the roads, how to be better mechanics for their equipment, and how to love investing in themselves through biking. They have also been a wonderful example of how to be synergistic by bringing their participants to other DIP-IN programs so they could create exposure and opportunity to other lifestyle changes.

I, along with many other residents of the Near Northwest, have been very proud and blessed with all the DIP-IN programs we have supported over the years. What DIP-IN has done has changed lives for the better. And these two ladies have carried the banner for healthier lifestyles to their community in such a way that I often get teary-eyed when I talk about them.

We are healthier because of the Riverside Riders. Not just physically but spiritually as we see two of our own helping to lead the way in the community that has given so much to them all their lives. It inspires us to want to do more.

Because of them, we do.