Pedlow Honors Fallen Police at Tour de Force 9/11 Memorial Bike Ride
Amy Pedlow said she felt like she won the lottery the day she became a university police officer.
That was 20 years ago when she joined the University Police at University at Buffalo (UB). Through the years she rose to lieutenant and shift commander. On January 15, she was appointed assistant chief of the Buffalo State University Police Department.
“Getting into law enforcement was the best thing that ever happened to me,” said Pedlow, a Grand Island, New York, native. She studied elementary education at Buffalo State in the early 1990s before realizing education was not the career for her. While working in a catering position on campus, she learned of the university police exam, which she soon took and passed.
Pedlow feels such an affinity for law enforcement officers who sacrifice their lives that on September 10, she flew to New York City with her bicycle and joined hundreds of officers from across the country and abroad in the Tour de Force 9/11 Memorial Ride. The 270-mile ride, which this year spanned from New York City to Boston commemorates police officers, firefighters, and others who lost their lives on September 11, 2001.
Pedlow has participated in seven previous Tour de Forces, although due to injuries she went as a non-cycling volunteer two of the years. This year, Pedlow and 300 fellow officers started in Jamaica/Queens and spent four days cycling through the lower Hudson Valley, the countryside of Connecticut, and ending at the Boston Marathon finish line.
“This is such an inspiring event,” Pedlow said. “We all remember where we were on 9/11 and know how it has affected life as we know it today. But six years after it happened, people’s memories started to fade. I didn’t want the memories of these officers and their sacrifices to be forgotten, which is why I wanted to get involved.”
The Tour de Force raises funds to benefit the families of police officers who are killed in the line of duty nationwide each year. This year they raised a total of $505,390 for the families of 32 officers.
“The riders' ages range from guys in their 20s to retired officers in their 60s,” said Pedlow, adding that she has formed lasting friendships with officers from as far away as Green Bay, Wisconsin; Phoenix, Arizona; and even Ireland and Australia. “They are all dedicated—whether they are riding or providing volunteer support.”
As for the onlookers, the majority cheers them on and thanks them for their service.
“Everyone loved the police right after 9/11, but that sentiment has changed in recent years,” she said. “The media doesn’t usually publicize the good things that officers do. This is one of them.”