Bike trip to raise money for Sept. 11 victims' kids

Ira Levy, a 38-year-old journalism professor from Chicago, will leave Seattle on a cross-country bike ride today in an effort to raise $1 million for children who lost parents in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The money will be used to pay for college education, housing, health care and other needs.

While riding a bike across the country for charity may not be a very original idea, Levy thinks the route he has planned is.

Bicycling for charity Ira Levy is cycling across the country and collecting pledges to raise money for children orphaned Sept. 11. For more information, see Levy's Web site at www.911nyeduride.org.

He wants his 70-day trek to New York to be as grueling as possible because of the hardships the victims of Sept. 11 went through. So he and two companions are crossing three mountain ranges and 150 miles of Nevada desert.

"There'll be times when my legs ache or my back hurts, but I'll recover from that just fine," he said. "There's a lot of other people who will never recover from the events of 9/11."

The zigzag journey will total 4,486 miles — one mile for each orphan, plus 1,000 extra for police and firefighters who have served in the aftermath of the tragedy at the World Trade Center and the other Sept. 11 targets.

"The route is not very logical," Levy said, "but I designed it this way because there was no logic to the events of 9/11."

Through corporate sponsors and Wright College, where he teaches, Levy has already raised $40,000. He's soliciting pledges for more contributions from the public.

An avid cyclist since age 16, Levy said he came up with the idea because biking is one of his passions and because, as a professor, he believes in the benefits of a college education.

The money Levy raises on his 9/11 NY Education Ride will go into the Twin Towers Orphan Fund. He plans to present New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg with a check at Ground Zero.

He will be joined on the trip, which begins at 6 a.m. at the Paramount Hotel, by Beth Mingledorff, a friend, and Michael Marijanovic, one of his students who was moved by the cause.

J.J. Jensen can be reached at 206-464-2386 or jjensen@seattletimes.com.