Bikers Ride For Good Cause - SuffolkJournal.com

Bikers Ride for
Sick Child
by Jane Lee Bock

July 22, 2001

Long Islanders love Sunday afternoons in the summer. Spending time with family, lounging around the pool or park, and barbecues are but a few of the activities we cram into these few warm months. But while most of us spent our time this weekend relaxing around home and hearth, more than 500 members of Long Island motorcycle clubs took their bikes to the streets to raise money for a desperately ill Babylon boy suffering from acute myeloide leukemia.

Joey Horny could appear only briefly at the event held in his honor. He stays away from most public activities, even though for the most part he appears to be a typical three year old boy with plenty of energy. You couldn't tell from the outside, but his white blood cells cannot fight off infection so even the slightest social contact could be deadly.

He was diagnosed with his illness on his second birthday and has since spent most of his time in hospitals. His mother, a civil service employee, still works - the family needs the health care benefits. His father is now his full time caretaker, and Joey needs a bone marrow transplant but no match has yet been found.

"It is so important for people to donate blood and platelets," said his father Joseph Horny. "People say they're afraid of needles, but I have to give my son shots every day. Don't wimp out. He doesn't."

Horny said his son first became ill at 18 months of age when his fever took them to the emergency room at Good Samaritan Hospital. Eventually the test results led them to North Shore University Hospital where they received the devastating news. Their son had a rapidly progressing blood cancer. Within weeks the child's leukemia had become 100% malignant.
He's already had numerous chemo therapy treatments and two relapses, but his indomitable spirit and innocent charm keeps the family hopeful that a bone marrow donor may be found soon.

And the father will never stop advocating for his son. On July 30th there will be a blood drive for Joey at Our Lady of Lourdes Church on Hunter Avenue West Islip between the hours of 3:30 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Bone marrow typing will also be available at that time.

The ride was organized by the Postal Workers Motorcycle Club, a relatively new group made up entirely of post office employees. But charity rides do not limit themselves to just one club so many came out to support little Joey including the Leathernecks, the Alliance, and Motorheads. It started in Melville, stopped in Bayville, Centerport, Kings Park and Stony Brook, eighty five miles in all.

Tim Deem, an organizer of the event said, "Motorcyclists don't have a great image and we are trying to change that. The clubs do a lot of charity work. We are ordinary working people, just like anyone else and we care about people. We are just glad we can be of some help."

So the next time you are out for a Sunday drive and you come upon what seems to be a great number of motorcycles taking the same route, give them some room, they might just be riding for a worthy cause.

Students at the Central Islip Early Childhood Center received a course in quilt making from Art Teacher Shelley Debin. It was integrated into the curriculum by discussing Black Hostory Month, Women's History Month and Valentine's Day. The quilt is comprised of squares from each of the 26 classes and is on display in the center.