Hundreds of bikers squeezed into the Shawnee United Methodist Church parking lot on Sunday for the Blessing of the Bikes.
For the past 10 years, riders from all over the area have been congregating at the church at the beginning of May for the unofficial start of their riding season. It is said by some to be Northwest Ohio’s biggest motorcycle blessing, with more than 14,000 bikes showing up and well over 2,000 people and riders.
Bryan Bucher, the pastor at the church says, “It’s been very humbling, and it’s the bikers that make it special. Our advertising budget for this is $0, so these people just come back year after year and there’s just nothing else like it.”
For Pastor Bucher, this will be his last bike blessing at the church as he’s leaving for Cincinnati after serving Lima for the past 17 years.
"Serving the people of the Lima area is the greatest that I’m ever going to have as a minister,” he says.
He also says it’s been the greatest blessing of God to have been able to be a part of this community and participate in the bike blessings every year.
