JAMESTOWN, N.C. — This Mental Health Awareness Month, a Greensboro man is raising funds for mental health services with a charity bike ride on Saturday.
Ronald Jones is the founder of the RJ Strong Foundation. In 2019, Jones became ill due to a clot in his left leg and had to undergo nine different surgeries. In the process, he lost two of his toes.
“Laying there in the hospital bed as those healthcare workers were taking care of me with such care, people I didn't even know, I could see how overwhelmed at times they were and the mental strain they were under,” Jones said. “It fell on me then when I get well, I want to do something to bring attention to this."
That's when he had the idea to start the Pedaling for Mental Health Charity Bike Ride. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Behavioral Health Division and the Brenner Children's Mental Health Fund.
Jones said he hopes the ride will encourage others to consider cycling to balance mental and physical health.
“People even in your family, live these stressful lives that we live and sometimes need help, they need to talk to someone to get through it and because of the stigma and the negative connotations of that, they sometimes suffer and don't get help," Jones said.
This race is in partnership with Mayhem Cycling and Cycle Paths of Greensboro.
Saturday's ride will start at 8 a.m. at Ragsdale High School in Jamestown. Participants can sign up for a 60-mile, 30-mile, or 12-mile route. This is the first year of this event. It's $30 to register.
