Bike run to honor Marine recruit

By Denise Dick

By DENISE DICK

HOWLAND

Photo

Michael Theodore

The family of one of three Marine recruits killed in a March traffic accident wants something positive to come from the young man’s death.

A 75-mile memorial motorcycle ride is set for noon June 5 at Howland High School, 200 Shaffer Drive, in memory of Michael Theodore Jr., 19. Registration begins at 10 a.m.

Theodore Jr. along with fellow Marine recruits Joshua A. Sherbourne, 21, of Southington, and Zachary A. Nolen, 19, of Newton Falls, died March 31 when the car in which they were traveling was rear-ended by a tractor-trailer on state Route 5.

The young men were traveling to Cleveland to complete their enlistment.

Theodore Jr.’s brother-in-law, Mike McFarland of Cort- land, and his dad, Michael Theodore Sr., chose a motorcycle run as the memorial because it’s something the family shared.

The last face-to-face conversation Theodore Sr. had with his son centered on a planned motorcycle trip to the West Virginia mountains.

“We were looking forward to it,” he said. “We had the bikes all packed. That’s something that we did together. We ride as a family.”

They were supposed to leave the day after the accident.

Donations for the event are $25 for riders with no charge for passengers. Food, door prizes, a 50-50 raffle and basket raffles also are part of the event.

All proceeds will go toward building a youth center at Pentecostal Community Church, Jefferson, in Theodore Jr.’s memory. It’s the family’s church and Theodore Jr. was active in it.

“A youth center is something that Mikey was really passionate about,” McFarland said.

The two talked about what they wanted to see there: basketball court, classrooms, spaces for other activities.

“The center will also be open to the public,” Theodore Sr. said.

Besides a way to honor his son and raise money for a good cause, Theodore Sr. is thankful that helping organize the bike ride has provided him a focus.

His family’s faith in God helps them through the tragedy.

“I can understand how people who don’t have faith turn to alcohol and drugs when they lose someone,” he said. “You just want to be numb.”

Nights are the most difficult time for him, times when his son would have been home but isn’t.

McFarland’s cell phone still has his brother-in-law listed in its contacts.

“He was just a great guy,” McFarland said.

Sometimes, it’s difficult to believe the last several weeks have happened, he said — difficult to believe that Mikey is gone.

They were a tight-knit family though, and there was nothing left unsaid — nothing Theodore Sr. wishes he’d done with or for his son that he didn’t.

The two were texting each other shortly before the accident.

“It was father-son stuff,” Theodore Sr. said. “I asked if he would be wearing his full uniform when he came home.”

After their conversation ended, Theodore Jr. was texting his fianc e, Angel Willis. That provided the distraction, allowing the young man unawareness of the impending crash.

Theodore Sr. says he and the family take some small measure of comfort in that knowledge.

While many of the young man’s possessions were mangled or destroyed, rescue workers found his cell phone intact, an impression left around it by his fingerprints.

“That’s how we know that he was texting when it happened,” Theodore Sr. said.