Latest news with #OliverStratton
Yahoo
20 hours ago
- Yahoo
Community gathers at Ollie's Ride for Change to advocate for safer roads, honor lives lost
Community members gathered June 7 at Colorado State University to advocate for safer roads in honor of people who died due to distracted driving — including 10-year-old Oliver Stratton of Timnath. Ollie's Ride for Change was held at the Lagoon at CSU to honor Stratton's life and all those who have died in crashes caused by distracted driving. Stratton was hit and killed while riding his bike in his Timnath neighborhood in August 2023. The driver in the crash was sentenced to one year in jail earlier this year after a jury found her guilty of careless driving. The driver had been using her phone in the seconds leading up to the crash. The June 7 event — hosted by the nonprofit formed by Stratton's family called Ollie's Bike Parade — is the second annual event of its kind to raise awareness in Stratton's honor. Last year's bike parade drew hundreds of community members to Timnath Community Park for bicycle decorating, a family-friendly bike parade, activity tents, food trucks and more. This year's event, now organized in collaboration with Colorado State University, included much of the same, according to a news release prior to the event. The Pokemon-themed family-friendly bike parade began at 10 a.m., with free bicycle decorating kits available ahead of the parade. A road safety expo, bike decorating contest, memorial and advocacy tent with a ghost bike graveyard representing bicyclists who died since 2023, food trucks, face painting and other activities were also planned. The day's activities were meant to be about more than just the event, but to be the continuation of a movement to demand safer roads, higher penalties for distracted driving and honor lives lost in distracted driving crashes, according to the news release. "This is about ensuring no more families are shattered by preventable tragedies," Stratton's mother, Clarissa Stratton, said in the news release. "We need real change, and it starts here." This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Ollie's Ride for Change held at Colorado State University June 7
CBS News
a day ago
- CBS News
Community bike ride honors Colorado boy killed by distracted driving, calls for change
Nearly two years after a young Colorado boy was killed by a distracted driver, his community is uniting for "Ollie's Ride for Change." Oliver Stratton was 10 years old when he was hit and killed while riding his bike in Timnath. The "ride for change" is a movement that aims to make roads safer for bicyclists and pedestrians and honor the lives lost to distracted driving. CBS "I think it's just incredibly joyful to watch a community come together," said Oliver's mother, Clarissa Stratton. "It is now like one of the most dangerous times in Colorado to be a human being existing outside of a vehicle." The event was organized by Oliver's parents, Clarissa and Rod Stratton. Participants dressed up or decorated their bikes to resemble their favorite Pokémon and took two laps around the lagoon on the CSU campus to raise awareness about the dangers of texting and driving. "We have to do better about protecting each other's lives, and that means being better drivers. Putting down the cell phone. It is against the law," said Clarissa Stratton. CBS Colorado Oliver was killed while riding his bike when a fifty-year-old woman who was texting and driving hit him in August of 2023. His parents say it radically altered their lives. "We feel the weight of that every day, and we're out here advocating because we want to make sure that doesn't happen to other families," said Clarissa Stratton. In addition to the ride, the event had resources for cyclists and a pledge for adults and kids to sign, asking them not to drive distracted and to speak up if they see someone doing it. Clarissa said it's time for Colorado drivers to realize the responsibility that's in their hands every time they get behind the wheel. CBS "Please drive like lives are depending on it because they are, and my family knows better than most the cost of distracted driving," she said.
