The Welland County Motorcycle Club has decided to shift gears with its annual Biketoberfest fundraiser by entering into a new partnership with a local organization serving the community. In the past, the beneficiary of its annual motorcycle raffle was Pathstone Mental Health. This year, organizers have teamed up with The Hope Centre .
The club has printed some 5,000 tickets which are selling for $20 each, with the top prize being a 2023 Harley Davidson Sportster S Black valued at $22,000. The second prize for the draw, which takes place at the end of the Sept. 21 event, is $2,000.
On Friday, representatives from The Hope Centre met with members at the club to officially launch the partnership and kick off the draw — with Welland Mayor Frank Campion posing atop the prize bike. In an interview, club president Sean Gillespie said the organization is looking to support a smaller, closer-to-home organization this year after many successful years with Pathstone. Gillespie said he and fellow board member Brian Armstrong recently met with representatives at The Hope Centre and were impressed.
“Brian and I were just amazed by how they were able to — with so little resources, in my opinion — how they were able to do so much,” he said. “We’re all members of a motorcycle club. We all have our bikes, or some of us have too many bikes, and we just don’t realize just how lucky we are until you visit a place like the Hope Centre and see all they do for the city of Welland.
It.
