Three friends, three bikes, 4,000 miles —

Pedal for Prevention going coast to coast to prevent sex abuse

by Jessica Machetta on August 23, 2010

Tyler Gilliam, Charleston, S.C., via Raleigh, Mike Allen, United Kingdom, and Landon Phillips, Charleston via Charlotte, are riding from the Carolinas to Los Angeles to raise money — and awareness — to fight child sex abuse.

 

Click image to be redirected to Pedal for Prevention’s website. 

The three guys, college friends, come up with an idea to help kids and raise money for advocacy groups around the nation. Pedal for Prevention brings them from Charleston, South Carolina, to Missouri’s Capitol City. From here … it’s on to L.A.

Gilliam admits it isn’t something most people want to address. But he says it’s one of the most preventable problems in society as we know it. He works for Darkness to Light, an advocacy group in Charleston, and says the kids’ stories have touched him. He says issues like AIDS, Cancer, drug and alcohol abuse are already getting lots of attention in America. But he says one in six boys and one in four girls are sexually abused by age 18. He says we’re the adults and it’s up to us to make it part of the conversation and address the prevention of the epidemic.

 The trio hopes to make it to Cali’s Pacific Coast by the end of October, raising $40,000 dollars to pump back into communities to prevent sexual abuse against children. They’ve raised about $5,000 so far and are hoping people will track them on their blog throughout their journey. They came through Missouri this week and have posted updates about their trip to Busch Stadium and much more.

Jessica Machetta reports [Mp3, 1:15 min.]