The New England Classic Charity Bike Tour, Inc. (NECCBT) was formed as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization in 2021 in order to continue the New England Classic, after the American Diabetes Association had decided to stop sponsoring this fundraising cycling event.
The mission of the NECCBT is to raise funds on behalf of other IRS qualified Section 501(c)3 non-profit organizations, whose missions support research, education, and awareness aimed at curing and treating chronic diseases, such as diabetes, that affect a significant portion of the United States population.
The original Board of Directors for the NECCBT included those shown in the photo to the left; from left to right: Mike Topalian, Rich Schwartz, Kevin Powers, Karen Sharland, Faith Linsky, Jim Iannone, Michael Cavanaugh, Jim Evans, Tracey Thompson and Marc Baskin. Board member Steve Witley is not in the photo. Since our founding, Doug Conmy and Kathy Liu have joined the board, and Kevin Powers has stepped down from the board but he remains on our jersey committee. .
We are a group made up of veteran riders and volunteers from past New England Classics going all the way back to the very first ride. We do this because we love cycling, because we are dedicated to fundraising for an important cause, and because we’re committed to maintaining the tradition of hosting the best overall charity ride experience in all of cycling, right here in New England.
The NECCBT is completely volunteer-run, with no paid staff and no office. This keeps our overhead low so that all net proceeds from the ride can be donated to charity. It’s important to note that the American Diabetes Association “loans” Tim Wilson to us to assist with some crucial aspects of this complex event. As the past coordinator of the ride, Tim brings a wealth of mission-critical expertise to this role.
