posted July 19, 2006
Businessman and custom-biking enthusiast Lynn Jones is cranking up his commitment to community and area youth once again by bringing the 2nd Annual Lynn Jones Foundation Children’s Bike Benefit to Bradley Square Mall on Saturday, Aug. 12.
Proceeds from the event will go to the Lynn Jones Foundation, a nonprofit organization supporting local charities that are dedicated to the education and development of children. LYNNCO Custom Cycles, which is sponsoring the second annual fundraising event, is owned and operated by Jones. The business builds custom bikes that are publicly auctioned with proceeds going exclusively to children’s charities through the Jones Foundation.
This year’s event is to feature live entertainment including music from the local Dexter Thomas Band. The Dexter Thomas Band is an oldies Rock & Roll act that plays songs from a broad range of artists. The 11 piece band plays hit songs from John Mellencamp to Chicago and from the Beatles to Steely Dan. Following the Dexter Thomas Band will be country music singer/songwriter Jerry Dale Roach. JDR’s debut and self titled country music album was recorded at 16 Ton Recording Studio on Music Row in Nashville, and was recently released this past May.
The headliner for this year’s event will be a special performance from country music artist, Keni Thomas and his band Cornbread. Thomas, a Special Operation Forces veteran, served in the Somalian military mission recounted in the motion picture, Black
Hawk Down. He has partnered with Jones on a one-of-a-kind custom bike named “Bombshell.” The “Bombshell” bike will be auctioned off at a later date to raise money for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation’s “Hero Fund.” Established by Thomas, the Hero Fund helps provide for the education of children who have lost parents serving in U.S. Special Operations Forces. The “Bombshell” bike’s design depicts different eras of military service and will be unveiled and displayed at the event.
This year’s event will feature several show bikes, including the award-winning “Kiss My Wheels,” “El Mirage” and “Paragon.” Three new bikes will be unveiled: “Peacemaker,” “The Bravest” and “Bombshell.” All were built and are owned by LYNNCO Custom Cycles.
“Peacemaker” is a special bike built in memory of Mattie J.T. Stepanek, a 13-year-old, best-selling author and poet who died from a rare form of Muscular Dystrophy. The literary teenager was an inspiration to many. In partnership with Muscular Dystrophy
Association, “Peacemaker” will be used to raise proceeds for MDA’s Mattie Fund. The
Mattie Fund supports the research of Dystautonomic Mitochondrial Myopathy, the disorder that took the youngster’s life.
“The Bravest” bike was built through a partnership with International Association of Fire Fighters. This bike’s design depicts a vintage look at the Firefighting profession dating back to the mid 1900’s. The bike will support fundraising for IAFF’s Burn Fund, a program dedicated to burn prevention, education, research and improving the lives of burn victims. Special guest and speaker at the event will be IAFF’s General President Harold Shaitberger. President Shaitberger will travel from the IAFF’s headquarters in Washington, D.C. to Cleveland to unveil “The Bravest” bike and lend his support for the Lynn Jones Foundation.
Through its support of the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, “Bombshell” will contribute funding for the organization’s “Hero Fund” that helps to pay for the college educations of the children of Special Operations veterans who are killed or injured in the line of duty.
A special bike ride and poker run will be an addition to this year’s event. The Kruise 4 Kids, will be open to all motorcyclists. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. on the day of the event at the Bradley Square Mall. Registration will cost $25 per rider.
With paid registration each rider will receive an event t-shirt, one all day event wristband, and a special Kruise 4 Kids ride patch. The First Bike Out will leave at 10 a.m. and The
Last Bike Out will leave at 11 a.m. The bike ride will take riders on a 90 mile journey through the countryside of East Tennessee.
The bike event will also include food, door prizes, a live auction sponsored by Crye-Leike Auctions, children’s games, giant inflatable toys and a family-friendly, carnival-like atmosphere. The benefit will be held outside the mall in the parking lot between Profitt’s and Sears.
The event will culminate with a fireworks display beginning at about 9:30 p.m. The day’s activities get underway at 11 a.m. Admission to the event will be a $5 donation and will be good for all of the day’s activities.
“I want to see children have the opportunity to be successful in life,” Mr. Jones said.
“Children deserve a chance for success. Every child deserves to be loved and that’s exactly what our foundation is all about. Working with, and providing for our children is a way of giving back to the Cleveland and Bradley County community that gave me a chance when I their age. Supporting young people is a great way of giving them hope and, most importantly, showing them that we care.”
As chairman and chief executive officer of Lynn Jones Enterprises, Mr. Jones has made contributions to many youth initiatives through his foundation. Just a few of these causes include: Boys & Girls Clubs of Cleveland, Junior Achievement of the Ocoee Region and Cleveland Family YMCA’s Y-Cap Program for at-risk youth. The foundation has also launched the Dale Jones Scholar/Athlete Award that has been presented this year for the first time to recipients from Bradley Central, Cleveland, Walker Valley and Polk County high schools. The award will be given each year to a qualified candidate from each school to assist with their post-secondary education.
Lynn Jones Enterprises is a diversified business with subsidiaries in warehousing, construction and others, as well as the LYNNCO Custom Cycles. Mr. Jones’ passion for building custom bikes has led him to multiple national events and world competitions. His bikes have won various awards, championships and international media exposure. Championships include the prestigious Rat’s Hole in Daytona Beach, Fla. and at International Bike Week at the Daytona Speedway. His bikes have also lined the pages and covers of many top motorcycle publications like Full Throttle magazine and Art of Chopper, a hard-cover book. Each of these award-winning bikes will be on display at this year’s Bike Benefit.
Mr. Jones is working closely with the Bradley Square Mall, Cleveland/Bradley Chamber of Commerce, Junior Achievement and a variety of event sponsors to develop and promote the fundraising event.
“Last year’s Bike Benefit was great and I believe this year’s event will be even better,” Mr. Jones said. “I would like to personally thank everyone who attended last year’s benefit and to invite them back for this one. Those who attend the 2006 Bike Benefit are in for a real treat. To feature live entertainment and a concluding fireworks show, I believe we’re going to have another huge turnout.”
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