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Ride for Mental Health Cycling Event to Benefit Tykes & Teens

April 2, 2019

Pictured above: Back Row L to R: Ben Permuy, Kristin Zufan, Chris Burrowes , Samantha Burrowes, Laura Everett, Courtney Buckel, Ron Gabriel, Paula Hundt, Lauren Espitia, Lisa Beert. Front Row: Harper Zufan, Hudson Zufan

Treasure Coast Cycle Werks, Beyond Bikes and the Treasure Coast Cycling Association have partnered to host a family friendly charity cycling event for mental health awareness. The Ride for Mental Health will be held on Saturday, May 4th at the Port St. Lucie Civic Center from 10:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m. and will benefit Tykes & Teens, a non-profit that has provided mental health services to more than 35,000 local children and families on the Treasure Coast. The fundraiser will feature a kid’s bicycle rodeo, a casual 4 mile sidewalk ride, and a 30 mile tempo road ride for the serious cyclist.

Food will be provided by Miller’s Ale House in Jensen Beach and refreshments by Natalie’s Orchid Island Juice Company, while children’s activities will include a bounce house. Registration to ride is $30.00 for adults and includes food and a t-shirt. Children 12 and under can participate free.  Those who don’t wish to ride can attend free and eat for a $5.00 donation. T shirts can be purchased for $15.00. All proceeds benefit Tykes & Teens, a non-profit mental health agency that is dedicated to strengthening families and preventing suicide, substance use and other dangerous behaviors by ensuring that all children have access to high quality mental health services. This includes counseling as well as a wide range of specialized programming that helps families cope with sexual abuse, domestic violence, bullying,  anxiety, depression, eating disorders, school suspension and more. Tykes & Teens provides services in Martin, St. Lucie, Okeechobee and Indian River Counties.

“We are very grateful to these businesses that have taken the initiative to organize this event for our benefit”, said Tykes & Teens CEO Jeff Shearer. “We can’t afford to wait for another tragedy either nationally or locally to recognize that the mental health of our children should be a top priority. We are especially excited about this event because we know that healthy activities like cycling are great ways to reduce stress and anxiety and improve our overall physical and mental health.”

To register for the event, visit www.tykesandteens.org. For more information, call Paula at 772-220-3439 or visit the event page on Facebook.