WINGS ACROSS TENNESSEE HISTORY
Since 1996, members of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association (GWRRA) Tennessee Chapter C, based in the Tri-Cities, have spent countless hours raising money for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Through the years, the local chapter has been joined in its fund-raising efforts by members of GWRRA chapters across the state.
To date, members in the GWRRA Tennessee chapters have raised $935,000 for the Memphis hospital, and they hope this year to exceed the million dollar mark.
“It’s very possible because we normally hit from $80,000 to $100,000 a year,” said Chapter C Director Tom Jayne. “That’s what it’s been for the last three, four years. The economy may hurt us some this year.”
The St. Jude fund-raising effort began for Chapter C members in the summer of 1996, the idea of former Chapter C member Mike Taylor. The first event was a cruise-in where everyone was invited to show his or her car or motorcycle and have his or her picture made for a donation to the hospital. They raised $5,000 that first year, and five couples rode their Gold Wings to Memphis to give their donation and visit with the children.
During the next 13 years, the club has held more cruise-ins, yard sales, golf tournaments, auctions, kisses with “Big Tom” Buchanan of “Survivor” fame, and an event called “Driving the Track at Bristol.”
Wynne Stewart, now deceased, used donations to make quilts for the children being treated at St. Jude. Club member Carolyn Jarrell is continuing Stewart’s work, and for a donation of $25 or more, she will make a quilt to be donated either in honor or memory of someone.
In April, the local chapter sponsored a bean supper at Crossroads Christian Church in Gray that raised $1,400. The 10th Annual St. Jude Benefit Golf Tournament will be held on Wednesday at Tri-Cities Golf Course in Blountville. Registration is $60 per person or $240 per team. Previous tournaments have raised between $4,000 and $5,000, Jayne said.
On May 23, the chapter will hold a bike show at Wal-Mart on Fort Henry Drive. Visitors can pay $1 to vote for their favorite motorcycle.
On Oct. 2-3, members of the Tennessee Gold Wing Road Riders Association will make their annual 500-mile ride from Bristol to Memphis — with, they hope, a check large enough to top the million-dollar mark.
The two-day trip, called Wings Across Tennessee, will begin on Oct. 2 at Atlas Honda in Bristol, Va., and continues through Knoxville, where riders will stop for a charity lunch with proceeds going to St. Jude. After a few more stops for fuel, the riders will stop for the night in Dickson. New riders join the group all along their route. The next afternoon, after a stop in Jackson for lunch, the low rumble of Gold Wings will steadily grow across the campus of St. Jude.
Plan now to ride this year; it will be one of the most memorable ride of your life. Call Tom Jarrell for more info. 423-538-8827 or 423-383-0339.
“You have never given as great a gift as when you give to help a child.” | 
