Bike Ride For Missing Children Starts Today

ALBANY — The sixth annual Ride for Missing Children–Greater Capital District gets underway early Friday morning, September 20, to raise funds to support recovery efforts of missing children of local families. The day-long event honors missing children, fallen law enforcement, and provides brief prevention education programs in elementary schools along The Ride. The Ride typically raises approximately $20,000 to support missing children prevention and recovery programs. Proceeds go to the nationwide poster distribution program of The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), as well as locally to the personal and online safety education programs of the Capital Region office of NCMEC. The opening ceremony is 6:30-7:30 a.m. at the University at Albany, in honor of Suzanne Lyall, who was last seen stepping off a bus on campus to return to her dormitory. Suzanne, the daughter of Doug and Mary Lyall, went missing March 2, 1998. The 100-mile route will continue to Lincoln Elementary in Scotia (approximately 8:54-9:24 a.m.), where missing Craig Frear attended school. Heading into his senior year at Scotia-Glenville high school, Frear disappeared at age 17 on June 27, 2004. When he went missing, the captain of Scotia’s soccer team was 5-foot-11 and 190 pounds. The ride will then make its way to Geyser Road Elementary in Saratoga (10:36-10:56 a.m.), where Lyall attended school, before going to Mechanicville Elementary (12:42-1:12 p.m.) where lunch will be served to the riders and family guests. From there, riders will head to Tamarac Elementary (2:48 p.m.-3:08 p.m.) in Troy before heading back to Albany at the New York State Museum, where the Missing Persons Remembrance is located, for the closing ceremony. For further route details, visit www.rideformissingchildrengcd.org.