Cincinnati Navy veteran and author Jim Serger has finished a coast-to-coast bicycle ride at Ground Zero, turning a 3,500-mile journey into a tribute to those killed on September 11, 2001. A closing ceremony in New York marked the end of the ride, which raised nearly $15,000 for veterans and first responders as the 25th anniversary approaches.
Serger rode from California to New York City and dedicated the trip to the lives lost in the attacks, according to WLWT. His arrival at Ground Zero served as the final stop after a journey designed to connect remembrance with fundraising.
Before the finish, Serger and fellow Navy veteran Cory Hardy planned to cover about 100 miles a day on the cross-country route, as reported by FOX19 NOW. That earlier report said the campaign was aiming to raise $250,000 for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, which supports veterans, first responders and families affected by the attacks.
A Cincinnati Author Has Made 9/11 Remembrance His Life’s Work
Serger’s ride grew out of a longer effort to preserve personal memories of September 11. He has written a series of books about 9/11 stories, including “9:11 A Time to Always Remember,” and earlier coverage by WCPO described the project as a collection of firsthand recollections from people remembering where they were that day.
The ride also gave Serger a way to honor the first responders who ran toward the danger, including the 343 firefighters, 23 police officers and 39 Port Authority officers killed in the attacks. His stated goal was not only to raise money, but to keep those individual acts of service from becoming just another line in the history books.
How The Fundraiser Connects To Tunnel To Towers
The Tunnel to Towers Foundation says its work includes providing mortgage-free homes to Gold Star and fallen first responder families, building specially adapted homes for catastrophically injured veterans and first responders, and helping combat veteran homelessness. The organization is also marking the anniversary with a Steel Across America tour that will travel more than 10,500 miles before returning to Ground Zero on September 11, 2026, according to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation.
Serger’s own website identifies him as a Navy veteran and author and links the ride’s fundraising campaign to Tunnel to Towers. With the bicycle now parked at the finish line, the Cincinnati author’s 9/11 project has reached its destination just as the country prepares for a major anniversary of the attacks.
