Domestic violence can happen to anyone, including children. That fact is
unfortunately all too real for family members of young Silvie Yocum, who died as a result of domestic violence
at the age of five. In her memory, her family hosts the annual fundraising and awareness event called Silvie’s Ride Against Child Abuse in Macomb which draws hundreds of riders each year. This year’s Silvie’s Ride is scheduled for Saturday, June 17, 2023, and the public is invited to attend.
Silvie’s Ride is a nearly daylong event that offers several ways for the public to support the cause, including an all-you-can-eat breakfast, a silent auction, and participating in the ride. The event is based at the Macomb Elks Lodge, 401 South Deere Road in Macomb, Illinois. Breakfast, which costs $10 per person, will be available from 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. A variety of items will be available for bidding as part of a silent auction from 7:00 a.m.
until 4:30 p.m. Vehicle/ride registration will be from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. on the day of the event; pre- registration is not required.
For those who want to join the ride, the cost is $20 per vehicle, plus $5 per passenger. All vehicles are welcome to participate, but motorcycles are encouraged. For motorcyclists, a “blessing of the bikes” is planned at 10:00 a.m. in the parking lot. Riders will leave the lodge as a group promptly at 10:30 a.m., with a  police escort.
Riders will follow a pre-determined route to scheduled stops in McDonough, Warren, Henderson, and Hancock counties, before returning to the Macomb Elks Lodge. A route map will be provided at registration. Riders are not required to follow the entire route from start to finish. Dinner will be provided to registered  riders starting at 4:30 p.m. at the Macomb Elks Lodge.
All proceeds from Silvie’s Ride are donated to Silvie’s Fund at Western Illinois Regional Council-Community  Action Agency (WIRC-CAA) Victim Services, which provides free counseling and advocacy services to survivors of abuse.
For more information about Silvie’s Ride, call Kathy Yocum at 309-255-0301 or find them on Facebook at facebook.com/SilviesRideAgainstChildAbuse/.