MRF Young Activist Scholarship Fund

Congratulations to all our MRF Young Activist Winners!!

2006 - Shawn Dickie of ABATE of Alaska, Aaron Meyer of ABATE of Indiana, Justin Crawford (The Kid) of ICMS (Idaho Coalition for Motorcycle Safety) and David Duffy of ABATE of Iowa.

2005 - Robert Cuthbertson of ABATE of California and Jennifer Lynn Basden of ABATE of South Carolina

2004 - Crystal Maney of CBA/ABATE of North Carolina

Biker “Freedom Fighting” activists have recognized for some time that our membership and leaders are aging, and that there is a need to encourage younger people to become involved in motorcyclists' rights. To that end, the Motorcycle Riders Foundation has created a scholarship fund to recognize deserving candidates who are a minimum of 18 years old and not over 30 years of age who otherwise may not be able to attend the MRF's Meeting of the Minds conference.

The MRF has dedicated a limited amount of seed money to the scholarship fund to get things rolling. The MRF is looking for additional contributions from individuals, national, state and local organizations and businesses that would like to participate in the program. Click here to make an on-line contribution to the MRF Young Activist Scholarship Fund. Checks made out to the MRF Young Activist Scholarship Fund can be sent to: MRF Young Activist Scholarship Fund, 236 Massachusetts Ave. NE Suite 510, Washington, DC 20002.

The Motorcycle Riders Foundation Young Activist Scholarship is going into it’s fourth year of this successful program to activate our youth into defending biker rights for the future. The program started with the MRF donating $750.00 the first year to get it rolling and generous donations from MRF members. The first year the MRF could afford to send one candidate and the second year this program doubled to two winning candidates with larger donations. Our third year we doubled the winning candidates to four. Individuals, National, State, and Local Organizations and Businesses are encouraged to continue their donations so we can grow this program even more for the future. Grants are being explored as a way to fund this but it still is a ways down the pike.

Nominations will be accepted from either state or local SMRO groups, and must be submitted on the MRF-approved application form below.

Candidate Criteria:

1) Nominated candidates must be between the ages of 18 and 30 with a valid Motorcycle Endorsement on their Drivers License. 31st Birthday must fall after Meeting Of The Mind’s for that year.

2) Candidates must be a member in good standing of a State Motorcyclists' Rights Organization (SMRO). Length of membership required in SMRO to be determined by its members if candidate is qualified.

3) Candidates must be nominated by their SMRO. Nominations will be accepted from either state or local (District / Chapter / Local) SRMO groups, and must be submitted on an MRF approved application form.

4) Nominations must be submitted between October 1st and July 15th and postmarked no late than July 1st of the year for which the application is submitted.

5) Candidates are to submit a minimum three hundred (300)-word essay on why biker's rights are important to them. A well written essay from the heart is like a picture or blueprint of who the candidate is; coming directly from the candidate, this gives the committee members a better perspective of the individual. Include the essay with the MRF YAS Application Form.

Winning candidates will be announced via an MRF E-mail News Release on or about August 15th. All candidates will be notified with a letter of thanks and encouragement to re-submit their candidacy for the next year if they are not the selected winner.

What Do Winning Candidates Receive?

One-year membership to the Motorcycle Riders Foundation, effective the first full day of the Meeting of the Minds during the year in question.
Round-trip airfare to the MRF's Meeting of the Minds conference, or alternate travel expenses so long as those expenses in total do not exceed the cost of traveling by air. If an alternative mode of transportation is chosen, candidates will be required to provide receipts in order to be reimbursed (receipts will be accepted for tickets on other modes of transportation, hotel accommodations, gasoline and food purchased while traveling to and from the Meeting of the Minds conference). If there is any question about acceptable travel expenses, it is the responsibility of the candidate to check with the MRF prior to incurring said expenses.
Hotel accommodations at the Meeting of the Minds conference. Accommodations will include the hotel room only. Telephone, food, movie rentals, etc. will be the sole responsibility of winning candidates.
Meeting of the Minds conference registration and banquet fees waived.
Special recognition at the MRF's Meeting of the Minds conference. Said recognition will include a plaque, presentation of one-year membership, and other items or activities as approved by the MRF Board of Directors.

Click here for a downloadable text version of the nomination form.

Click here for a downloadable pdf version of the nomination form.

Questions about the MRF Young Activist Scholarship Fund should be directed to MRF Scholarship Committee Chair Miles France at miles@mrf.org.