Cyclists depart from Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Sunday morning for the 12th annual Spencer Martin Memorial Bike Ride for Habitat. Martin was a volunteer and president of Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity.
Kevin Carroll | Times Leader
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Cyclists depart from Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Sunday morning for the 12th annual Spencer Martin Memorial Bike Ride for Habitat. Martin was a volunteer and president of Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity.
Kevin Carroll | Times Leader
LEHMAN TWP. — A scenic bike ride through the heart of the Back Mountain served to raise money for Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity, while also honoring the life of a man who was instrumental in the nonprofit’s mission for so many years.
The 12th annual Spencer Martin Memorial Bike Ride for Habitat welcomed dozens of avid area cyclists to the campus of Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Sunday morning.
“Spencer was a longtime volunteer and a former president of the organization.” said Karen Evans Kaufer, the executive director of Wyoming Valley Habitat for Humanity. “He was an engineer, and he was so helpful with every build that we did. … We needed a way to honor him, and this is it.”
Race founder and director Bob Borwick, who served as a sort of master of ceremonies to kick off the ride, said that the idea for the ride came from his own bike rides through the area.
“A group of us, maybe 10 or 15 people, we were always riding the Back Mountain,” Borwick said. “So we partnered with the Martin family to get this started.”
On hand Sunday were Martin’s children, Kim, Kurt and Eric.
“They’ve been so good to us over the years,” Borwick said. “We appreciate what their father did.”
“Dad treated each home he built like he was going to be the one living in them,” Kim said shortly before the race. “He loved working with Habitat.”
A brisk Sunday morning was a welcome relief for the ride’s organizers, who have had to contend with some nasty weather over the last few years.
“Last year we canceled because of the pandemic, but the year before that we had a thunderstorm,” Kaufer said. “We finally have some great weather this year.”
The ride started and finished at Penn State Wilkes-Barre, and took cyclists on a 35-mile journey through the Back Mountain. Signs and volunteers were stationed along the way to guide riders along the right path.
Among this year’s group of participants were a handful of first-timers.
“I always like to get involved with races like this, ones that raise money for people in need,” said Jason Davis, from Dupont. “Habitat for Humanity is a great cause.”
Shavertown resident Wendy Narcum had never done this ride before, but not because she wasn’t athletically qualified: She had recently competed in a triathlon in Wyalusing.
“I’ve heard really good things about this ride, and I love trying new things,” she said. “It’s so nice around here, it’s a very scenic route.”
The riders left the campus parking lot at 9 p.m. sharp, after a few words from Borwick and from Eric Martin, who thanked everyone for honoring his dad’s memory in this way.
“Dad had such a passion for Habitat for Humanity,” Eric said. “He loved those Saturdays and Wednesdays when he would head out to the job sites.”
This year’s ride has so far raised around $20,000 toward Habitat’s mission to build and sell affordable homes to those looking for them in the Wyoming Valley.
It’s the work Spencer Martin cherished so much, and thanks to fundraising efforts like Sunday’s ride, the show can go on.
“Spencer was a friend to everyone,” Kaufer said. “He was, and still is, an inspiration to us all.”