Senate Resolution No. 5493

BY: Senator GRIFFO

COMMENDING Richard T. Jordan upon the occasion of
his retirement after 23 years of devoted service to
the Ride for Missing Children

WHEREAS, The State of New York takes great pride in helping to
increase awareness and understanding of important issues which affect
citizens across our great State and throughout the nation; and

WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to
those compassionate individuals and renowned organizations which devote
their energy, resources and thoughtful care to improving the quality of
life in their communities; and

WHEREAS, Attendant to such concern, and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this Legislative Body is justly proud to
commend Richard T. Jordan upon the occasion of his retirement after 23
years of devoted service to the Ride for Missing Children; and

WHEREAS, The Ride for Missing Children is the biggest annual
fundraiser for The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children -
NCMEC-NY/MV, which strives to "Make Our Children Safer, One Child at a
Time"; and

WHEREAS, The missing children issue is complex and multifaceted;
there are different types of missing children including family
abductions, endangered runaways, non-family abductions, and lost,
injured, or otherwise missing children; according to the FBI, there were
466,949 missing children entries made by law enforcement for those
younger than 18 in 2014; and

WHEREAS, Born and raised in Sauquoit, New York, Richard T. Jordan
worked as a meter reader, lineman, and line supervisor with Niagara
Mohawk Power Corporation; after 35 years of service, he officially
retired in 1994; and

WHEREAS, An avid cyclist and runner, Richard T. Jordan competed in
16 Boilermaker Races in Utica, New York; the day after his retirement,
he rode a mountain bike alone from New Hartford, New York, to his son's
home in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida; his journey took 18 days; and

WHEREAS, After the abduction of Sara Anne Wood in 1993, Richard T.
Jordan met with her family and joined in the search for her, and
ultimately for justice; two years later, Richard joined Team Sara, a
group of eight, including Sara's father and brother, who rode their
bicycles 600 miles, from Washington Mills, New York, to Washington, D.C.
to raise awareness for the plight of missing and exploited children
nationwide; and

WHEREAS, Richard T. Jordan and Sara Anne Woods' family walked to
Pittsfield, Massachusetts in February of 1996, to rally for the
extradition of Sara's murderer to New York to stand trial; and

WHEREAS, From that team began the Ride for Missing Children, Mohawk
Valley; from its humble beginnings of eight riders, the Ride has grown
to include almost 500 riders each year; and

WHEREAS, For the last 23 years, Richard T. Jordan has pedaled in the
Ride for Missing Children, serving as lead pace shepherd for several of
them; in addition, he has ridden in other New York State Rides for
Missing Children and the inaugural Ride for Missing Children in Texas;
and

WHEREAS, Richard T. Jordan has also spoken to numerous groups of
children about both bicycle and personal safety, and has become known as
the unofficial ambassador of this great cause; and

WHEREAS, In 2015, Richard T. Jordan was a member of The Ride of Hope
from Central New York to The National Center for Missing and Exploited
Children in Washington, D.C. commemorating the 20th Anniversary of the
first Sara's Ride; and

WHEREAS, For his steadfast and unremitting commitment to the sport
of cycling, Sara Anne Wood and the thousands of other missing children,
Richard T. Jordan was inducted into the International Bicycling Hall of
Fame in 2006; and

WHEREAS, For over two decades, Richard T. Jordan has dedicated his
life to serving as the strong and powerful voice of the many children
who have gone missing; as of May 29th, 11,178 children have been
reported missing, and 7,655 children have been recovered in the United
States during 2018; and

WHEREAS, With him throughout have been his wife of 56 years, the
former MaryAnn Chudzinski, their two children, Susan and Thomas, and two
grandchildren, Tyler and Ryan, all of whom feel privileged to be a part
of his life and rejoice in his achievements; and

WHEREAS, Rare indeed is the occurrence of such a compassionate
blending of strength, leadership, intellect, and commitment as that
demonstrated by Richard T. Jordan over a lifetime of sacrifice and
dedication to others; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
commend Richard T. Jordan upon the occasion of his retirement after 23
years of devoted service to the Ride for Missing Children; and be it
further

RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to Richard T. Jordan.