The second annual Ride for Freddy Rally will raise money for the New England Donor Bank.
Deb Coons sits on
a couch at her friend’s house in Scarborough talking about her son
who died two years ago after being fatally injured in a car crash.
As she talks about Eric “Freddy” Frederick, she looks down at the
floor then lifts her head and smiles before describing her
19-year-old son.
“He just made
people smile,” Coons said. “He was full of life, he was vibrant and
made you laugh. There isn’t a day that goes by where I’m not
thinking about him.”
Coons, along with
her friends Mark and Susan Dobrovolny of Scarborough, are keeping
Freddy’s memory alive with the second annual Ride For Freddy Rally.
The motorcycle rally is scheduled for Aug. 22 and will begin at Big
Moose in Portland, ending at the Stadium in Portland. Participants
will ride for about two to three hours. There is also a live/silent
auction included in the event.
The ride will not
only remember Freddy, but also raise money for the New England
Donor Bank. Freddy was an organ donor, and after his death, his
heart, liver, kidneys and veins were used to save four peoples’
lives, Susan Dobrovolny said.
“We decided to
have a bike rally because we have found that the biker community is
very diverse and committed to raising money for charities,” she
said. “Being an organ donor is so crucial and it really does save
lives. It was important to Freddy.”
Coons learned of
that importance on July 10, 2007. After spending the day at Salmon
Falls in Hollis, Freddy and his friends were driving back to
Scarborough. Along a winding-stretch of road in Buxton, the driver
of the car in which Freddy was a passenger, lost control and
crashed into a tree. Freddy was fatally injured and rushed to Maine
Medical Center in Portland.
The police
contacted Coons and told her Freddy had been seriously injured in
the Crash. She and her husband Paul raced to the hospital where
Freddy stayed alive for one day. After dying, his mother found out
about his wish to be an organ donor.
“My husband
brought up the subject of organ donation with him while he was
applying to get a new license,” Deb Coons said. “After he passed, I
discovered he was an organ donor.”
Knowing that her
son is helping people even after his death comforts Coons, she
said.
“From the very
beginning, I put myself in the shoes of people who needed organs,”
she said. “I will never forget Freddy and I will always feel that
loss, but it is comforting to know that he was able to save lives
even after he was gone.”
Mark Dobrovolny
remembers Freddy as a carefree teenager who loved sports and music.
Before his death, Freddy was working at the Clambake on Pine Point
Road and was saving money to attend Southern Maine Community
College.
He was a good
friend of the Dobrovolny’s son, Brett, which is how Mark and
Suzanne grew to know him.
“He was a great
kid,” said Mark, who rides his own Harley Davidson motorcycle. “We
loved having him around and we feel this rally is the best way to
raise money for organ donations and to remember him.”
Freddy also
brought the Coons and Dobrovolnys together after his death.
“I think we had
spoken on the phone once before Freddy had died,” Coons said. “Now
I consider them to be dear friends.”
Last year’s ride
drew about 50 riders and raised $4,200. Both Coons and the
Dobrovolnys expect about 100 riders to turnout this year.
According to New
England Donor Bank statistics, there are more than 99,000 people in
the United States waiting for an organ transplant. More than 6,000
die waiting every year.
Maine and several
other New England states have made it possible for residents to
register as donors when they obtain or renew a driver’s license, a
process that takes seconds and is legally binding. About 25 percent
of Maine drivers are registered organ donors. There is no cost to
be an organ donor.
“It’s so simple
and doesn’t take a lot of time,” Susan Dobrovolny said.
If a
non-registered person dies suddenly in a Maine hospital and the
organs are in a condition to be donated, the hospital notifies the
Organ Bank, which sends a representative to meet with the next of
kin. About 65 percent of the time, the family agrees to donate
their loved one’s organ’s, according to the Organ Bank’s
statistics. One organ donor can save the lives of up to eight
people.
The recipient of
Freddy’s heart actually lives just 15 minutes from Deb Coons.
“He used to be in
the same pee wee football league that Freddy played in,” Coons
said. “It’s amazing to think that Freddy’s heart gave this man
another chance at life.”
Deb Coons, left, of Scarborough, holds a photo of her son Eric Leighton “Freddy” Frederick, who died in 2007 after an automobile crash. Coons and her friends, Mark and Susan Dobrovolny, are spearheading the Second Annual Ride for Freddy, which will raise money for the New England Donor Bank.
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