This is a follow up to the Thunder Riders Families Helping Families Benefit Poker Run held on Sept. 15^th, 2012 in regards to the purpose and end results of that fund raiser.

On Dec. 8^th, 2012 our Chapter had the great privilege of delivering the gifts purchased with the funds raised in our Sept. Poker Run. This year we had four families we “adopted” through the Palmetto Project and WIS-TV.  They chose the families, and when we made request for choosing families, we asked that the families would allow us to deliver our gifts directly to them.

Our group had fun shopping for the families  the Saturday after Thanksgiving and then wrapping the gifts that same day. Gail Bragg, our secretary, did a great job facilitating our shopping spree that day.  We had over $3000 raised to spend for the families. Gail had our shopping list all laid out in a manner that made it a breeze and added to the pleasure of knowing while shopping what smiles we were going to put on the faces of these families.

We gathered at Thunder Tower Harley Davidson on a cool, but soon to be sunny, Dec. 8^th morning with eighteen motorcycles and three pick-up trucks to follow loaded with gifts to deliver. Mac Thomas, one of our Road Captains, had taken the time to run the routes beforehand and did a great job laying out and scheduling our delivery plan and timing with the families. Our four deliveries around the Columbia SC area went off like clockwork.

In my report on our Poker Run published by The Carolina Rider back in Sept. I mentioned “maybe bikers are good, caring people and do more for a positive impact on the communities around them than most people will ever know or believe”, I do believe this day we did a lot to make believers of four families and their neighbors who came out to witness what was going on. As intimidating as a huge group of thundering Harleys rolling into a neighborhood can be, we saw more excitement than fear in the eyes of the kids. The tears we witnessed from the parents were those of joy, knowing their family now had promise of a bright and Merry Christmas that otherwise would not have been this possible.

From the Thunder Riders H.O.G. Chapter we all would like to give special thanks to the biker community, all our sponsors and supporters who played a part in helping us to raise the funds that put the gifts under these families Christmas trees.  Be on the lookout for our 2013 benefit event to be announced soon. We look forward to seeing you all again.

Special thanks to The Carolina Rider for their wonderful support, advertising and coverage of our event and for all they do for the biker community.  Merry Christmas and a Happy and Safe New Year in the wind for all !!