Why I’m Riding Across America...​

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My name is Patrick McGarry, and I am fortunate to call Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, home with my wife, Mariana, and our sons, Shane and Jonathan.

 

Next year marks the 25th anniversary of 9/11—a day that changed America forever. For me, it’s not just a date in history; it’s deeply personal.

 

I woke up that morning in Montana, 2,300 miles away, and turned on the TV just after the first plane hit the North Tower. Instantly, I was transported back to the fear and confusion of February 26, 1993, when I worked on the 95th floor of the South Tower during the first attack. But nothing—not even that experience—prepared me for what came next.

 

When my mom told me that my little sister Katie was trapped at Windows on the World, time stopped. A cold, crushing weight settled in my chest. I remember staring at the screen, trying to will a different outcome, praying for a miracle I knew wouldn’t come. In that moment, a piece of me died. And in the years since, no amount of time or distance has ever filled that hollow space. No day goes by without thinking of her.​ 

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I pledged that I would Never Forget Katie, my cousin John, my friends, co-workers or the heroic fire fighters and police officers.

 

That’s why I am riding my bike from San Diego to St. Augustine—3,000 miles across this great country—in the spring of 2026. My goal is to raise $100,000 for the Tunnel to Towers Foundation, an organization that honors the sacrifice of firefighter Stephen Siller, who laid down his life that day. The foundation continues to support first responders, Gold Star families, and catastrophically injured veterans.

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This ride isn’t just a physical test—it’s a tribute. Grief will be my fuel. It’s my chance to turn pain into purpose, and remembrance into action. As I cross deserts, climb mountains, and push through headwinds, I’ll be thinking of those first responders who never made it home on 9/11, as well as the veterans of the War on Terror.

 

I will be riding in gratitude—for their courage, for the freedom we still enjoy, and for the resilience of the American spirit.

 

I hope you will support this mission, share it, and help me carry their legacy forward—mile by mile.

 

Please donate today using the link below and you will be forwarded to my secure Tunnel to Towers fundraising page.

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Let Us Do Good.