A community rallied together to make a local biking legend’s birthday dream come true.
The Rivermead Care Home in Norton, Malton, hosted a huge biker rally last Tuesday (23 July) for resident Gary Embleton’s 70th birthday.
The idea came from Nicola Bedford, activities coordinator at Rivermead, after chatting to Gary’s family – who had originally wanted to take him to the race circuit Oliver’s Mount for the special occasion, but unfortunately this wasn’t possible.
The care home then took to Facebook to call out for any avid bikers who could come and visit Rivermead to help celebrate Gary’s birthday – and it demonstrated the power of social media, as the post received over 500 shares, with over 200 bikers arriving for the special day.
Gary, who used to be a biking racer himself, was ‘overwhelmed with emotion’ at the turn out.
Bikers who used to race with Gary said, “We are privileged to be a part of something so amazing for a legendary racer and make his birthday something special, the biker community reaches far and wide and we really are a family.”
Sarah Jackson, general manager at the home, said: “Staff at Rivermead are dedicated to making sure that the home is a hub of the local community, and this event, along with all their hard work, has definitely paid off.
“It was wonderful to see the residents’ faces light up when they saw the bikes and hear them spontaneously clapping and cheering. We all had a lovely day.”
