Few church events begin with a rumble, especially not one that becomes a roar. But the Rev. Kay Mueller, rector of Church of Our Saviour, Okeechobee, was delighted to hear such a rumble on the morning of Saturday, Sept. 16, because it signaled the arrival of some special guests. About 50 bikers in all, including many from the local Eagle Riders group and two from the Okeechobee County Sheriff’s Department, attended the church’s first-ever Blessing of the Bikes.

“One of the things we’re doing is looking at niche groups of people,” Mueller said of her church. “Not many people reach out to minister to them, and we want to share the love of Christ.”

Rev. Kay with Deputy Adrian Rogers of the Okeechobee Sheriff’s Department | Photo: Patrick Van Tassell

That gospel-based desire, the news of a sister church that had sponsored a similar event, and a Blessing of the Bikes liturgy that she found online all helped propel Mueller and her church into this brand-new endeavor.

“We brainstormed about what was the best way to approach it in Okeechobee,” she said. “You have to look at your community. And something that we’ve always done well here at Church of Our Saviour – in fact, it’s become kind of a little slogan – is ‘We pray well, and we eat well.’ So food had to be a part of our event.”

The church also has a close connection with a local motorcycle group. “Two of our members, Brad Stark and his wife, Diana, serve respectively as president and chaplain of Cypress Hut 4509 Eagle Riders,” Mueller said.

A small group of church members prepared a breakfast for the bikers consisting of sausage, biscuits and gravy, sliced tomatoes, jellies and jams, coffee and juices. During the meal, the rector offered a brief interactive devotion in which she and their guests discussed how people’s perceptions of bikers may not mesh with reality.

“Those who see them on their bikes don’t realize that these people may be riding out to the highway because they’re on a run to raise money for one of our local charities,” Mueller said. For the local group, these include the Navy SEAL-UDT SEAL Museum, military canines, various hospitals, Alzheimer’s research, Wreaths Across America and the annual Big Lake Missions Outreach Toy Run.

Following the Blessing of the Bikes, one of the bikers treated Rev. Kay to a ride. | Photo: Jane Robards

Following the meal and devotion, the group went out to the church courtyard for a time of prayer using the Blessing of the Bikes liturgy. Mueller also prayed over and blessed small prayer crosses, crafted of Bethlehem olive wood, giving one to each biker to place in their saddlebag.

The event was such a success for both parishioners and bikers that the church has already decided to make it an annual event, she said. “The group that showed up told us, ‘This was really nice. Can we do this again?’ And I said, ‘Absolutely.'”

Church of Our Saviour has also decided to partner with the Eagle Riders on some of their community projects, Mueller added. “Whether we be a hospitality point for them on one of their rides or a gathering point for toy contributions, we don’t know the specifics yet, but we volunteered to partner with them.”

“Thank you again for today,” the Eagle Riders’ chaplain wrote back to the rector the afternoon of the Blessing of the Bikes. “Everyone felt welcomed and truly blessed.”