They are biking from the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut to Washington D.C. to memorialize the victims of December’s Newtown massacre.
Their journey will roll past the historic Morristown Green around 8:15 a.m. on Sunday, March 10.
“Team 26” is 26 elite cyclists, one for every child and staff member gunned down at the elementary school. Three Newtown residents--Monte Frank, Chris Peck and Bill Muzzio–are among the riders. Monte and Bill have children who attended the school.
“I am riding because I want to live in a country where parents don’t have to worry about putting their kids on the bus in the morning,” Monte wrote on the Team 26 Facebook page.
“I started Team 26 as a way to deliver a message to Congress demanding common sense gun legislation.”
“I’m riding on Team 26 to demand a change,” added Bill Muzzio.
“This cannot be allowed to happen again in any other community. We moved our family to Sandy Hook because it was safe. Our daughters have the best memories of their years at Sandy Hook Elementary. They got on their bus every morning wanting to go to school. I want Newtown to be remembered for what we did to overcome this horrific tragedy and not what happened at Sandy Hook Elementary… I want to be a hero for my girls and make their world a safer place to live.”
Another Newtown resident, Rob Cox, will address a breakfast audience in Morristown on Saturday, March 9, at 9:30 a.m., in the Parish House of the Presbyterian Church at 65 South St. Admission is free and the public is invited. A choir of local youths is scheduled to sing My Beautiful Town, which children from Newtown have recorded. Here’s a video clip from the Katie Couric show:
Also on Saturday, at 11 a.m., prior to the annual Morris County St. Patrick’s Parade, 20 Gold Star Mothers will assemble on the Morristown Green to honor U.S. servicemen and women killed in Afghanistan and Iraq.
The Newtown events in Morristown were coordinated by the Morris Area Committee to Reduce Gun Violence.
Morristown Councilwoman Rebecca Feldman, co-founder of the committee, said she is hoping for good turnouts. She reached out to Team 26 to alter its 118-mile route on Sunday to include the Green, a site for civic discourse since George Washington’s days there.
“They’re building a really good case for why we need to come together against gun violence,” Rebecca said. “It’s not just about Dec. 14. It’s every day, in every community and every town.”
Team 26 is selling bicycle decals to help subsidize its campaign. The cyclists are scheduled to start on March 9 and arrive in the capital on March 12.
Anyone wishing to cheer for the cyclists in Morristown should note this weekend’s time change, Rebecca said. Daylight Savings Time kicks in during the wee hours of Sunday morning.
“I hope that it’s not just cyclists, but also that caring people, parents and kids will come out in great numbers, so the folks beginning their 118-mile day will feel loved and supported, and know that their message about why they ride is being heard.”
