Quaker Valley Pedal with Police connects students, local police and community

A new Quaker Valley initiative geared toward connecting students, district police and local first responders resulted in a caravan of kids cruising through Sewickley on May 17 for the inaugural Pedal with Police event.

More than 120 kids rode their bicycles from Osborne Elementary along Beaver Street to Edgeworth Elementary, escorted by officers from Sewickley, Edgeworth, Allegheny County Police, Port Authority police, the school district and other agencies.

“Everything went very well,” said Sewickley police Sgt. Dave Yurkovac, who was among the officers leading the way. “We were very pleased with the turnout. The kids were excited. The parents were excited. Everything came together very nicely. We were expecting (a crowd), but it also exceeded our expectations with how well everything played out.”

Yurkovac and Quaker Valley officer Thomas Liberty organized the event, which also featured an obstacle course, bike safety instruction and free helmet distribution.

Liberty said they handed out more than 100 helmets with help from Allegheny County Police and UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh.

The Rev. Ryan Kobert of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Sewickley prayed for everyone’s safety during a blessing of the bikes at the start of the event.

“It was really amazing to see the community turnout for this event,” Kobert said.

The event brought back memories of a similar one the church did a few summers ago, post-covid.

“Our church tried to do a safety event for bike riders because we know Sewickley, Edgeworth, Quaker Valley area has a lot of bicycle riders,” Kobert said. “We wanted to get out in the community and support those who like to ride, but the turnout was kind of low key.”

He commended Liberty and Yurkovac on their teamwork and for bringing everyone together.

“I was really excited to be a part of this and asked to do the blessing at the beginning,” Kobert said. “It was amazing how folks were all attentive to that part. Officer Yurkovack was on the bike leading the pack after the police escort. He got the crowd focused in.”

Kobert’s wife, Cindy, and their children, Logan, 10, and Nora, 5, were among the riders.

Nora rode near the back of the pack with her mom while Logan was at the front.

“I like how you had to bike from Osborne to Edgeworth,” Logan said. “The distance of the ride was just perfect. It was pretty cool (seeing officers on bikes), but not all of them were on bikes. Most of them were in the cars in the front. I was biking at the front and got to see them the whole time. I think it was pretty cool.”

Nora said her favorite part of the day was eating hot dogs and getting her face painted with a butterfly. The kids also ride frequently with their friends and often bike to school.

Kobert’s church provided hot dogs to participants after the ride. Hot dog buns were provided by Bimbo Bakery.

Giant Eagle donated water, and Snyder of Berlin in Leetsdale provided snacks.

An artist from Game Faces provided free face painting. Wish 99.7 FM handed out snacks and played music.

A mechanic from Pro Bike+Run did free safety checks and tune-ups.

Edgeworth and Osborne HSAs donated money to buy six bikes and accessories for a raffle.

Liberty thanked all the departments that volunteered their time to participate. He said he and Yurkovac will start planning next year’s event in the coming months.