CLEVELAND — After losing a loved one, one Cleveland man enlisted some friends to help bring awareness to the gun violence epidemic that took a young life.
What You Need To Know
- Calvin Love organized the “Bike to Unite Against Gun Violence” Bike-a-Thon
- Love and a group of men rode 330 miles from Cincinnati to Cleveland
- The Bike-a-Thon is to also raise money for Love’s non-profit, “Little Giants”
Calvin Love spent a lot of time getting ready for a ride.
“I’ve been riding for about, consistently, about a year now,” said Calvin Love.
The ride he was preparing for had a very special purpose.
“Unfortunately, four years ago, I lost my nephew,” he said. “He was gunned down in Euclid, and you hear about gun violence in the city and you never realize how it can impact you until it happens, you know.”
Love organized a bike-a-thon called “Bike to Unite Against Gun Violence” in memory of his nephew, Quenton Copes, Jr.
“He was known for his infectious smile. He was just very charismatic, leveled, everyone loved him. Just a great kid,” Love said. “Losing a family member let alone a young loved one like that the pain is unexplainable.”
To help with the pain, Love and a group of supporters rode their bikes 330 miles from Cincinnati back to Cleveland. Love hopes the bike-a-thon will start conversations about gun violence and how to stop it.
“Unfortunately, we have a lot of young children, young youth, in the city killing each other for no apparent reasons at all,” Love said. “So we want to spread awareness to this epidemic that’s going on in our city.”
The bike-a-thon also supported Love’s non-profit organization, “Little Giants,” which helps children from ages 6 to 17 who are battling obesity.
