Gearing Up for Seventh Annual Gun Violence Prevention Event in Napa Valley
May 29, 2024
Announcing the event’s Voices of Change Speaker:
On June 22nd in Yountville, CA, Rock the Ride USA, a community event raising funds and awareness for gun violence prevention, will hold its seventh annual Napa Valley ride/walk. With the motto "Community, Action, Change, Together," the event brings people together for a morning of biking or walking, followed by a "burritos and bubbles" brunch and guest speakers addressing gun violence prevention efforts. Rock the Ride USA provides attendees a tangible way to take action against this national epidemic by coming together as a community to support change.
“We know we are making a difference each and every year that we raise funds for our three nonprofits beneficiaries: Everytown for Gun Safety/CA Moms Demand Action, GIFFORDS, and Alaina’s Voice Foundation,” stated event co-founder, Rebecca Kotch. “We also know that our state is leading the way in gun safety and gun violence prevention thanks to the work of our event beneficiaries, their community partners, and gun sense champions in the state legislature.”
"As a survivor of gun violence, I am grateful our community continues to come together to support life saving prevention work,” said Liz Russell, Event co-organizer, Senior Survivor Fellow with Everytown for Gun Safety and volunteer with the CA Chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America. “Rock the Ride provides an accessible, family friendly day for folks to learn about the evidence-based solutions, intervention, and prevention strategies that can make every community in CA safer from gun violence.”
This year, the Napa Valley event will feature special guest speaker, Jackie Speier, who served in Congress from 2008 to 2023 representing California's 14th Congressional District — which includes San Mateo County and a portion of San Francisco County. Before serving in Congress, Speier was a California State Assemblymember and California State Senator; she started her career on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors. She was named to Newsweek’s list of 150 “Fearless Women” in the world and one of “Politico's 50” most influential people in American politics for bringing the Me Too reckoning to Congress. She served with Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-04), the force behind Rock the Ride, on the House Gun Violence Prevention Task Force in Congress. Currently serving again as a San Mateo County Supervisor, Speier is also a survivor of gun violence.
"Jackie Speier's courage and resilience in the face of being shot five times during the Jonestown massacre is truly inspiring. Despite that immense trauma, she dedicated herself to public service. I have profound respect for her perseverance and our meaningful working relationship over the years. As a gun violence survivor, Jackie is a passionate advocate for common sense gun laws to prevent such tragedies. Her first-hand experience fuels her tireless fight to make our communities safer and she is a close personal friend," stated Congressman Thompson.
Also joining the weekend as a special guest is Marianne Martin, who won the very first Tour de France Féminin in 1984, a race that ran alongside the Tour de France. The Tour de France Féminin lasted five years, and to this day the 1984 version remains the only women’s stage race that most closely mirrored the men’s edition. Even the modern Tour de France Femmes is substantially shorter and not run concurrently with the Tour de France. Along with Marianne, other noteworthy cyclists joining this year’s Rock the Ride include privateering and pioneering gravel pro, Peter Stetina, chef, author and endurance cyclist, Chris Cosentino, former pro and USA National Team cyclist, Giana Roberge Chicott, and former US Pro Gavin Chilcott.
For 2024, Rock the Ride USA’s Napa Valley event welcomes back title sponsor Sutter Health, an integrated, not-for-profit health delivery system serving more than 3.4 million patients in Northern California. “As care providers, it’s our duty to initiate dialogue with families about firearm safety, as we can't be sure if these conversations are occurring otherwise. These interactions don’t need to be awkward and may even be the crucial step that causes parents and guardians to reassess the gun safety measures in their home,” said Dr. Rob Nordgren, chief medical officer of Sutter Health’s Greater San Francisco Market.
Congressman Thompson, the inspiration for Rock the Ride, will lead the 25-mile bike ride ending at Yountville Park (2900 Lincoln Ave, Yountville). Along with his former colleague Rep. Jackie Speier (Ret.), he will host guest speakers, including representatives from Everytown/CA Chapter of Moms Demand Action and GIFFORDS, Arik Housley of Alaina’s Voice Foundation, and moderator Dr. Mark Shapiro. Shapiro, the event’s annual moderator, a Hospitalist at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital and creator and host of Explore The Space Podcast, (a show focused on bringing those who provide healthcare and those who seek healthcare closer together through conversations with leaders from across the spectrum).
In 2018, Rock the Ride USA was born out of a bike ride with Rep. Thompson, then Napa County Sheriff John Robertson, and Ride Napa Valley Event Producer Rebecca Kotch, following the March 9 Pathway Home shooting in Yountville, CA, and the February 14 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting in Parkland, FL which took place within three weeks of each other that year. Later that same year, the Borderline Bar and Grill mass shooting in Thousand Oaks, CA took the life of beloved 18-year-old Napa resident and Pepperdine student Alaina Housley. Alaina’s parents created Alaina’s Voice Foundation in her memory, and it became a beneficiary of Rock the Ride in 2019.
In addition to Sutter Health, this year’s Rock the Ride Napa Valley sponsors and partners include: Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria; Providence Queen of the Valley; Dickinson, Peatman, & Fogarty; Aonair Wines/Reverie II Winery; The Wine Institute; Gameday Men’s Health, Anomaly Vineyards; Zeitgeist Cellars; The Doctor’s Company; Trinchero Family Vineyards; Remedy PAC; Cecilia Aguiar-Curry for Assembly; Dan Kildee for Congress; Christopher Cabaldon for State Senate; Anne Cottrell Supervisor; Joelle Gallagher for Supervisor; Erica Conway, DDS; Lyre Non-Alcoholic Spirits, Frog’s Leap Winery; The Silenus Winery; Napa Printing; and several anonymous and in-kind donors.
Event Registration Fee: $30 - $75 per person. Ages 17 and under are free. Fundraising options are available on the registration website. Event proceeds go to three organizations: Everytown for Gun Safety/CA Moms Demand Action,GIFFORDS, andAlaina’s Voice Foundation.