06-05-2025
Miracle Riders delivering letters and messages of hope
The Miracle Riders are in the middle of their ride across the country to help raise funds for Columbus State University's Nursing Program. The Riders took off from Columbus, Georgia on Friday, May 2nd.
This year's theme for the Miracle Ride is the 'Pony Express'. The Riders will travel to different homes and hand deliver letters to people across the nation that have a connection to Chattahoochee Valley. On Saturday, May 3rd, the Riders delivered Mary Bowen Banes in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.
Mary's younger brother, Thomas 'Spanky' Bowen, was an officer with the Columbus Police Department. 'Spanky' was killed in the line of duty. The letter was from a friend of Mary's in Columbus, Georgia. Rick Stinson, who knew Officer Bowen well, spoke about the emtional delivery and how it honored his friend's memory.
'One of the things I think is important is that sometimes we forget what it does to the family of the officer. What they have to go through so it's good to remember them. And I know for myself it brought back all the things that I had to go through. So it was very touching,' said Stinson.
The Miracle Riders have supported the Columbus State University School of Nursing since 2021. That's when they established a multi-year fundraising goal of $1 million to enhance the school's pediatric nursing program. To date they have raised $600,000 toward that goal through three separate rides.
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