THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 26, 1994 TAG: 9408250166
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HOLLY WESTER
LENGTH: Medium: 74 lines
Two months after being injured by a drunken driver while on bicycle patrol, police officer Rhonda Bider is returning to work at the Second Precinct in style.
Bider was honored last week when a group of Oceanfront business owners donated a mountain bike to the department in her name.
``It really feels good to know people care for you,'' said Bider, who is still recuperating at home. ``I feel very special.''
The business owners, who run a group of restaurants and retail shops on ``The Block,'' pitched in to purchase a $700 Trek bike for the injured officer. Bider will return to work during the first week of September.
``We've known Rhonda for a while,'' said Alex Asercion, owner and operator of The Edge. ``We know her as a police officer, as well as a good patron in our restaurants. We wanted to show her how much we appreciate her.''
The accident that has left Bider with a severely scarred leg and nerve damage in her shoulder, neck and back, occurred June 30 at 10:30 p.m.
Bider was riding southbound on Pacific Avenue with another officer when she stopped to turn left on 20th Street. A 1987 Chevy Blazer struck her from behind, sending her on top of the hood and her bike in another direction.
The driver, Stephen Roberts, proceeded south until he struck a car at 19th Street and Pacific. He was arrested and charged for driving under the influence and hit and run.
Although her bicycle was totaled and her helmet was cracked in more than five places, Bider escaped with no broken bones or life-threatening injuries. Frequent dizzy spells and soreness, however, have plagued her for most of the summer.
``You never know when you're going to be hit from behind,'' said Bider. ``I strongly believe in helmets now.''
When Bider's supervisor, Sgt. Mike Ronan, was called at home about the accident, he ``couldn't believe it.''
He added, ``She's out there doing her job and she gets hit by someone who drank too much.
``You're really concerned when one of your friends gets hurt.''
The concern was shared by ``Block'' business owners when they got the news from a Pacific Avenue parking lot attendant.
When she was struck, it hit everybody hard,'' said Xeniks owner/operator Xenophon ``Xen'' Kopassis. ``It was like it was one of us.''
Purchasing the bike was an idea the business owners came up with as a token of respect and appreciation, according to Deepak Nachnani, owner of retail establishments Coastal Edge, Tequila Sunrise and Island of Dee.
``We wanted to do something nice for someone who has done so much for us,'' Nachnani said.
The relationship between many of the police officers and resort area business owners is the best it has been, said Chicho's owner/operator Matt Falvey.
``In the past, the public has seen our relationship with the police as an antagonistic one,'' Falvey said. ``Maybe the donation of the bike will be seen as solidarity between the two groups.''
Bider agrees that this unity plays an integral part in the big picture at the resort strip: ``We're all working together toward a common goal - to keep peace at the Oceanfront.'' ILLUSTRATION: Staff photos by DAVID B. HOLLINGSWORTH
Business owners pose with police officers. They are, from left:
Khalil Lel-Habr, Rob Ricketts, Mike Ronan, Richie Boner, Deepak
Nachnani, Matt Falvey, Alex Asercion, Xen Kopassis, John Riley and
Andy Spiess.
Police officer Rhonda Bider poses with the crumpled bike she was
riding when hit by a drunken driver.
by CNB