KANSAS CITY, Mo. 鈥� Hundreds of motorcyclists gathered to honor the life of fallen paramedic Graham Hoffman with a memorial ride, .
Graham was fatally stabbed in the back of an ambulance in April during a patient transport.
Hero Fund USA organized the July 12 ride that spanned from the Outlaw Harley-Davidson dealership in Blue Springs, Missouri, to the Harley dealership in Kansas City, Missouri. The number of participants nearly doubled the number that registered, according to Darrell Smith, CEO of Hero Fund USA.
鈥淸Graham] just wanted to help people. He did not stand by and let bad things happen without jumping in there and helping,鈥� Smith said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 such an honor to be able to be there to support his family in their time of grief and loss.鈥�
The memorial ride was also a fundraiser, with collected donations to be used to purchase training and life safety equipment for responders.
鈥淲e know from what happened to Graham that there鈥檚 probably not enough safety equipment out there that can prevent every tragedy, but we want to do everything that we can to prevent as many tragedies as we can,鈥� Smith said.
He also encouraged residents to appreciate the work of their local first responders.
鈥淏uy their lunch, buy them a cup of coffee, buy them a smoothie, but say 鈥榯hank you鈥� to them for making our community a better, safer place to be,鈥� Smith said.
WATCH | Insider analysis: Remembering Kansas City paramedic stabbed in the line of duty
