“Community Heroes 2010: John Kikol raises money for police, soldiers and firefighters”

Community Heroes 2010: John Kikol raises money for police, soldiers and firefighters

Posted: 04 Jan 2011 03:17 AM PST

Published: Tuesday, January 04, 2011, 5:01 AM Updated: Tuesday, January 04, 2011, 1:32 PM

AVON LAKE, Ohio -- This was not how Barbara Kikol had planned to spend her golden years.

After her husband, John, retired in 1998 as president and chief executive of CleveTrust Realty Investors, the Avon Lake couple had looked forward to a life of leisure: Golfing at the Avon Oaks Country Club, competing in marathon road races together, tooling around town in his-and-hers sports cars, traveling the world, and spoiling their grandchildren.

But all of that changed after John Kikol bought a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.

That 1993 Harley Fat Boy and the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks inspired the community contributions that make Kikol one of The Plain Dealer's community heroes.

Since 2002, John Kikol has raised $400,000 at motorcycle rallies on behalf of U.S. soldiers, police officers and firefighters. This even though Kikol has never served in the armed services or worn the uniform of a police officer or firefighter.

"Barbara has been incredibly supportive of everything we've done together," said Kikol, 66. "These last eight years have been perfect, the best years of our lives.

"The bottom line is we're not going to forget the sacrifices these people have made for us," he said. "Everything I do from now on, for the rest of my life, will be dedicated to honoring our fallen heroes."

After Sept. 11 and the ensuing wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, Kikol was deeply moved as the bodies of fallen soldiers began returning home in caskets. He recalled attending the funeral of Pvt. Brandon Sloan, 19, of Bedford Heights, who was killed by Iraqi troops early in 2003. Since then, Kikol said, he has attended about 40 funerals for area soldiers.

But just supporting the troops wasn't enough for Kikol. He decided the soldiers and the families of the casualties deserved more. He turned to the network of Northeast Ohio Harley-Davidson dealerships to spread the word.

Later in 2003, Kikol organized a Rally for the Troops that attracted an estimated 3,000 motorcyclists to Cleveland's Public Square. The next year the number of participants doubled.

"It was a humbling experience," Kikol said. "I didn't plan on doing it every year, it just turned out that way. It's never going to end for me."

In the years that followed, Kikol sponsored similar motorcycle rallies for firefighters and police officers. In 2004, he led a convoy of about 125 riders to Ground Zero in New York City. By the time they reached Manhattan, the troop of bikers had grown to 2,000, and 40 New York City motorcycle cops escorted them across the Brooklyn Bridge.

Recently, Kikol spearheaded a $100,000 renovation of the Veterans Memorial monument in Lakewood Park.

He shies from being called a hero.

"To me, it's the soldiers and the cops and the firefighters who are the true heroes," Kikol said. "The least we can do is to say thank you, to show them that we care and that we're not going to forget them.

Plain Dealer news researcher Jo Ellen Corrigan contributed to this story.

To reach this Plain Dealer reporter: jmccarty@plaind.com, 216-999-4153

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Harley Davidson

Tuesday, 4 January 2011