Our Story

Our son, Ryan, had an obvious energy about him. Like any almost 7 year old boy, his excitement, curiosity and passion for EVERYTHING and ANYTHING always left a lasting impression and, to say the least, made life full of fun. His natural wiring of busyness was never ending or limitless -- or so it seemed! Very rarely did he have self-chosen quiet time. He was either playing with Legos, jumping on the trampoline, helping in the kitchen, doing a project in the barn with his dad, or riding his bike. He always knew how to take fun and enjoyment one step further. It was great!  I remember in March 2019 we had a ton of snow and after plowing the driveway there was a huge snow pile by our barn. Ryan saw the pile and decided he needed to ride his bike down it. I guess he thought he was on some cool BMX show... he even commentated. It was so funny! “Hey sports fans, it’s me Ryan... watch this.” It’s one of my most favorite memories. To think even in the middle of winter, he would suit up in his snow pants, coat, boots, hat and everything else to ride his bike. It was great. He had such passion for everything he did.

Sadly, on June 13, 2019, Ryan was involved in a bicycle-truck accident and did not survive. 

He and his dad were riding bikes on the bike path and came upon an intersection. They had the right-of-way to cross, but a driver proceeded through the intersection and did not see him.  

While our loss of Ryan is extremely devastating and heartbreaking for us, we can only hope and pray it is for a greater purpose. We don’t want what happened to Ryan to happen to another child. So in an effort to protect young children while riding their bikes, we came up with the idea of bicycle safety flags. Young riders are at such a disadvantage when it comes to visibility. They just don’t have the height adult riders have. Our flag initiative began in August 2019, and since then we have handed out over 11,000 flags to kids free of charge. We are so grateful and excited to see how much support our cause has! 

Andy & Stacie Marsman