For the 14th straight year, members of the Portsmouth Motorcycle Club will collect money from motorists to buy food and toys for the poor this holiday season.

On Friday and Dec. 2 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., the bikers will be near OSCO Industries on U.S. 52 and on Chillicothe Street near the U.S. Grant Bridge hoping to raise $30,000 for the Salvation Army.

They will stand in the middle of the road with buckets collecting money from drivers.

“Don't run us over,” PMC Vice President Bob Seymore said. “But after 14 years, a lot of people in town know us and slow down.”

Capt. Bruce Eckhart said he wants to raise another $30,000 from the Salvation Army's kettle drive.

“It will be a challenge to reach the $60,000 we raised last year,” he said.

The PMC will not collect from drivers in Minford and Sciotoville like in past years.

The money will be used to provide toys and food for 500 families in Scioto County.

Once the money is collected, the bikers will buy Christmas presents for needy children and take them to the Salvation Army building at 1001 Ninth St. on Dec. 17.

Just what do the PMC bikers mean to the Salvation Army each year?

“Well, they collect about half of the money we need for Christmas,” Eckhart said. “So without them, we could only provide half as much food and toys as we do now.”

Eckhart is also a motorcycle rider and is a member of the Gold Wing Road Riders Association. He said his job with that group is to promote safety in riding.

Eckhart asks drivers to be aware of the bikers in the streets collecting money this season.

“One of the biggest causes of accidents is that motorists just don't see the motorcycle,” he said.

According to Eckhart, another motorcycle club will raise money for the New Boston fire and police departments to give to the poor. That group is not affiliated with the Salvation Army, he said.

JEFF BARRON can be reached at (740) 353-3101, ext. 236.