Cyclists take part in the last Tour de Scranton

SCRANTON, Pennsylvania – For two decades, Tom and Betty Moreken have made it their mission to help people struggling with substance abuse in honor of their daughter Erin Jessica Moreken, a Scranton High School graduate who died of a drug overdose in 2002.

“She broke the rules and took risks, liked to live on the edge. Unfortunately, she took those risks with drugs and things like that, which got her into trouble and ultimately cost her her life,” said Tom Moreken, Erin's father.

After her death, her parents founded the Erin Jessica Moreken Drug & Alcohol Treatment Fund.

In 2004, a friend of the Morekens suggested raising money for this cause by creating the Tour de Scranton charity bike ride.

The fund announced that this would be the final ride of the Tour de Scranton, now in its 20th year.

“I think in some ways it's kind of sad. It's kind of sad to know we're not going to do this,” said Bill Burke, founder of Tour De Scranton.

Tom and Betty say the fund has raised more than three hundred thousand dollars for the Erin Jessica Moreken Drug & Alcohol Treatment Fund.

“We are just grateful for this. That parents and families don't have to go through what we went through. The grief of losing a daughter never goes away,” said Tom.

And generations of families have supported the cause almost every year.

“The first time we did it with the whole family. My youngest was about six, I think. It's a little emotional, but I think they ran the course and stayed true to their cause,” said Art McCarthy, Tour De Scranton rider.

But Tom and Betty say this final trip does not mean the end of their mission.

After 22 years of investing, they hope another organization can take over the Tour de Scranton while they continue to focus on other aspects of the fund.

“Everyone hopefully wants the ride to continue. Our organization, the Erin Jessica Moreken Drug and Alcohol Treatment Fund, is not going away. We will continue to work to help people,” Tom said.