On Sunday, July 17, a bike ride can help bring orphaned children home. Brittany's Hope will host its first Biking for Brittany event, a metric century and metric half-century bike ride, beginning at the Star Barn Village, 1 Hollinger Lane, Elizabethtown.

The course - ranging from 31 to 62 miles - will take riders throughout Elizabethtown, Hershey and surrounding areas, said Dana Myers, director of charitable giving for Brittany's Hope. Proceeds from the ride will benefit at-risk and orphaned children served through the nonprofit organization.

Myers explained that the idea for the bike ride came from brainstorming ways to reach a new audience of supporters. The organization already holds fundraising events, including Brittany's Ball, an annual gala, and the Walk of Love 5K. A volunteer involved with the gala suggested the bike ride. "This area is a very active biking community," Myers said. "People are very invested in cycling here, and we wanted to tap into that as a way to try something new."

Biking for Brittany will feature a rolling start beginning between 7 and 9 a.m. and will include rest stops along the way for riders. "We have different groups from the community managing each rest stop, and we'll have a chance for our riders to refuel, because this is a long time to be out on their bike," Myers noted.

Founded in 2000, Brittany's Hope is an organization devoted to providing aid to abandoned children, including adoption grants for families seeking to adopt special-needs children. "Biking for Brittany will help children who are most in need of support," Myers said. "Brittany's Hope is unique in that 100% of everything we raise goes directly to help children."

Myers emphasized that along with participating in Biking for Brittany as an in-person rider on the day of event, people can support the mission by engaging in a virtual ride on their own time or by supporting a rider with donations.

"This ride is giving people the opportunity to enjoy beautiful scenery - we really took that into account when the route was planned - and get active while supporting a great cause," Myers stated. "It's going to be a fun day."

Registration will be available until the day of the event, but a discount on registration will be available until Wednesday, June 1. For more information on the event, visit http://www.bikingforbrittany.org.