Riders rally to support kids in need
Jul. 22—SOLON SPRINGS — Two wheels or four, everyone is invited to spread hope while cruising the backroads of Douglas County during the fourth annual Hogs for Hope ride July 27.
For Mike Kubala of Barnes, one of the top benefits of the event is the camaraderie along the route.
"We're all there for the same reason. Just everybody getting together and having a good time. A safe weekend. Just having fun and knowing that we're raising money for a very good charity," said Kubala, who has participated in the rides since they began in 2020.
Hogs for Hope organizers Jim and Shelley Faul of Solon Springs have raised more than $14,000 from the rides to support children in need of financial help due to a medical condition.
"Everybody kind of has a perception of bike riders are rough and tough, but they're actually one of the biggest donators of stuff when you ask for help," said Vicky Brown of Gordon. "It may look like a tough, rough, tough group when it comes to donating and stuff, I mean, we are actually a really good group of people."
The inaugural ride took place in 2020 when the Fauls' 10-year-old grandson, Nathan, was struggling with an autoimmune disease called Evans syndrome. For months his parents took shifts, one staying with him at the hospital and the other at home with their other children, switching in the parking lot.
"So we decided to do a benefit for them," Shelley Faul said.
Nathan died in February 2021, but his memory rode on.
"The next year we decided, let's continue because we know what a stress it is on families with sick kids. So we decided to continue the ride and try to raise money for other kids and families that are in need because of their kids' hardship, their medical condition or really whatever," Faul said.
They named the ride Hogs for Hope after Nathan's favorite animal, a pig.
The 2022 ride was held for Reid, a young man from Solon Springs who has a rare chronic kidney disease. Reid's father, Brent Sather, said the support they received was amazing.
"We were living at Ronald McDonald House, but I had to come back and forth. We used it for travel, paid medical bills, prescriptions," Sather said.
The event provided more than a financial boost. It was a dose of hope.
"Because families need not only support financially, but mentally. And when you get a group of people like that together, it really brings high hopes to not only the parents, but the children," Sather said.
As of this year, Reid is riding his own motorcycle.
Last year's ride raisedover $5,600 for Jocelyn, an 8-year-old Minong girl diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia. Brown, a secretary at the Northwood School in Minong, said the community embraced the event and donations poured in from local businesses and individuals.
Jocelyn's parents "were so appreciative that so much of the community came out for them," Brown said. "I got so many thank yous from them personally. ... It was just very touching that somebody had actually thought of them."
Faul said they were unable to find a child with medical needs to support this year, so they shifted gears to focus on helping kids in the community by purchasing free backpacks and school supplies for area students. They will be given away Aug. 25 at the Solon Springs Community Center.
Brown has known the Fauls for 10 years, and has volunteered for the ride every year. She believes in their mission.
"I just thought for them it was a way of healing that they felt they could give back, you know, when they lost someday. I think it was kind of a healing journey for them and then to just continue it and help other kids in our area has just been fabulous," she said.
Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. July 27 at Loiselle's Lakeview Lodge in Solon Springs, with kickstands up at 11:30 a.m. The route includes stops at Nelson Lake Landing in Hayward, Hub's Riverbend in Trego, View Point in Wascott and Tree Stand in Gordon. People can ride the entire route or just a section. Cars are welcome to participate along with motorcycles.
Raffles will be held at each stop as well as a 50/50 raffle. T-shirt sales are underway at Shirts Unlimited, with half the proceeds going toward the ride. Send a message through the
Hogs for Hope — Northern Wisconsin Facebook page
for more information or to donate.
Faul is also seeking to find local families to help with future rides.
"They would love to sponsor a certain child, you know, to help the parents because that is their goal, because they know what it's like to go through a loss, or struggle and not have money for gas, whatever," Brown said.
