Crime & Safety
Police Bike Tour Comes to Town
About 300 officers stopped in Warminster for lunch before heading back on the road toward the nation's capital.
About 300 law enforcement officers on bicycles participating in the Police Unity Tour stopped at the for lunch Thursday shortly after noon.
The officers from across the region were only hours into their trek to the nation's capital to visit the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial when they headed down York Road from Doylestown and into Warminster.
Once at the Warminster police station, the officers on bicycles and motorcycle police from Los Angeles, who assisted with directing traffic and leading the cyclist, ate a lunch of hoagies, chips, Powerade and water.
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After lunch, the officer headed down County Line Road toward Philadelphia.
Overnight the officers will rest in a hotel in the city before heading toward Washington, D.C.
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Warminster police Sgt. David Erenius is biking the route in honor of Waverly, N.Y., Patrolman Elmer Beers. Beers died in 1968 when a suspect grabbed hold of his service revolver and shot and killed the officer and a woman.
Erenius, who is part of the township’s bike patrol, has been part of the Police Unity Tour for the past few years and calls it a “great experience.”
“Nothing’s better than seeing the support from the people we go past,” he said.
Officer Kevin Stebner, of the Warrington Township Police Department, said he started riding in the tour several years ago after discovering it on the Internet.
“I love riding my bike and it’s for a good cause,” said Stebner.
Warminster first became a stop on the tour last year after they extended the lunch invite to the group, Police Chief Michael Murphy said.
“This is important. It’s part of the appreciation for the officers who give their life in the line of duty,” the chief stated.
Lt. Dominic Varacallo, Sgt. John McKenna, Officer Andrew Simkiw and Officer Jim Belvin will be attending next week’s ceremonies at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial along with Sgt. Erenius. The event is part of Police Memorial Week.
Erenius is sponsored by .
Money raised as part of the bike tour goes to support the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.
