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February 3, 2005

Annual Bicycle Ride Honors Fallen Police Officers, D.C. Memorial

The Woodbridge Township Police Department will participate in the 9 th Annual Police Unity Tour bicycle ride to Washington, D.C., Mayor Frank G. Pelzman has announced.

The event honors police officers killed in the line of duty and raises funds for the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington. More than 400 bicyclists from across the U.S. will ride this year. The Woodbridge group consists of Lt. Ed Barrett, Det. Sgt. Joe Joraskie and officers Len Gigantino, Marc Hecht, Joe Goodheart and Lee Scarano. They will be joined by a police officer from England, two from Italy and two from India.

The first leg of the tour starts May 9 and goes from Livingston, New Jersey, to Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan and then to Woodbridge. Day 2 will find the tour in Wilmington, Delaware, Day 3 in Annapolis, Maryland. The cyclists will arrive at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington’s Judiciary Square on May 12, having covered a total distance of 300 miles.

“This event show the tremendous brotherhood among police officers, as they come together to honor fallen colleagues,” says Mayor Pelzman. “I am proud that members of our department will once again be taking part.”

Each officer is responsible for raising a minimum of $1500.00 in order to participate. Tax-deductible donations to support the riders from Woodbridge Township may send their contributions to Woodbridge Township Police Department, c/o Officer L. Gigantino, 1 Main Street, Woodbridge, NJ 07095. Please make checks payable to the Police Unity Tour, Inc. More information on the Unity Tour is available at www.PoliceUnityTour.com.

“I commend our officers for their participation in the Unity Tour,” says Woodbridge Township Police Chief William Trenery. “When an officer is killed in the line of duty, no matter where he or she is, it affects all of us in law enforcement.”

The Police Unity Tour was created in 1997, when 18 officers rode bicycles from northern New Jersey to Washington, D.C. to honor colleagues who had lost their lives in the line of duty. There are now more than 400 members, with chapters in New Jersey, California, Virginia, Florida, New York and Maryland.