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Tony Skrodelis (front) leads a convoy of Salem Fields Community Church's motorcycle ministry to deliver food.
Members of the Salem Fields Community Church Motorcycle Outreach Ministry pray before delivering food to needy families.
Dwight Wheatcraft receives a bag of groceries from Pam Skrodelis and Alan Moore of Salem Fields Community Church. |
BY AMY FLOWERS UMBLE
Dwight Wheatcraft heard the rumbling engines long before 10 motorcycles showed up at his Falmouth mobile home yesterday morning.
Wheatcraft, a construction worker struggling in the tough economy, walked out to his small front porch to meet the bikers.
They hopped off their bikes and handed Wheatcraft a small frozen turkey and a grocery bag filled with the essentials for a Thanksgiving dinner: canned vegetables, rolls, mashed potatoes, gravy, pumpkin pie, Cool Whip and cupcakes in holiday shapes.
The bikers and a few women riding in trucks to help with the operation stayed to chat for a few minutes, then it was back to the road. They had eight more houses to visit, mostly across Spotsylvania County.
In all, the bikers rode about 95 miles in chilly weather, delivering Thanksgiving goodies to families falling through the cracks.
When the Motorcycle Outreach Ministry of Salem Fields Community Church conceived the idea of a Thanksgiving charity ride, members immediately decided to focus on those who struggled but couldn't get help in other places.
They chose fathers just laid off, families battling cancer, a recent widow and others who faced tough times but didn't qualify for help from social-services agencies and who weren't receiving aid from other churches.
"We just want them to know we understand," said Pam Skrodelis, whose husband, Tony, suggested the ride. "We're not out here to thump you over the head with a Bible, we just understand. Everybody riding on these motorcycles has been in the same boat. It's hitting everybody."
Pam Skrodelis drove an SUV filled with the bags of groceries and some of the turkeys. Deanna Gonzales-Williams rode shotgun.
Her husband, Kevin Wil-liams, an active member of the ministry, died Oct. 30.
Others riding had just been laid off or had spouses lose their jobs.
But when Tony Skrodelis proposed giving food to the needy, everyone signed up. Ministry members each nominated a family lost in the gap between need and services. And they were asked to donate $20 to buy food.
Using motorcycles for charity isn't a new idea for the bikers. They cruise in benefit rides throughout the year, to help Habitat for Humanity, Micah Ecumenical Ministry's cold-night shelter and others. They also sponsor a teddy-bear run each December, where members collect more than 500 teddy bears to donate to the pediatric ward of Mary Washington Hospital.
On frigid winter Fridays the ministry staffs the area's cold-night shelter, and on the third Thursday of the month members volunteer
The motorcycle ministry began almost nine years ago as a way to get more people to come to church, said Don Willis, one of the founding members.
"We're breaking down the stereotypes, there was a stigma for a while that motorcycles are trouble," he said.
But the faithful bikers face more than one prejudice.
"We're also breaking the stereotype of what the world sees of Christians," said Tim Mason. "Boring, Bible thump-ers, holier-than-thou."
But these bikers see their mission as simple, he said. They're supposed to follow the two most basic rules of Christianity: loving God and loving your neighbor.
"That's what we try to do, that's what we're trying to do today," Mason said during a break in yesterday's five-hour ride. "A lot of times people get down on their luck, and they think no one cares."
Amy Flowers Umble: 540/735-1973
Email: aumble@freelancestar.com
For details on the Motorcycle Outreach Ministry, visit salem fields.com or call 540/786-6212. |
