80 year-old grandmother cycles Natchez Trace for global women’s charity

Published: Mon Oct 15 2018


For Dr. Katherine Jeter, age is just a number. An experienced cyclist and fundraiser, the soon to be 80-year-old grandmother is embarking on a remarkable cycling adventure.

On October 17, Katherine will ride 444 miles along the Natchez Trace, from Nashville, Tennessee to Natchez, Mississippi to raise money for globalbike, inc., a Spartanburg, SC nonprofit connecting Tanzanian women to vital resources through bicycles.

A breast-cancer survivor and the grandmother of four and great grandmother of one, Jeter will undertake this ride to help women around the world achieve health, happiness and success. This isn’t the first time she and her bike have fundraised for important causes. To mark her 70th birthday, she biked 70 miles to raise $70,000 dollars for her two favorite local charities. Three years later, in 2011, she cycled across country with WomanTours, using the feat to raise more than $200,000 for specialty nursing scholarships.

For her 75th birthday, Katherine summited Mt. Kilimanjaro. It was there she got the name, "Bibi" from her mountain guides. Bibi means grandmother in Swahili. While in Tanzania she also saw how two wheels can make a world of difference. Her admiration for the strong women of Tanzania and the strides globalbike has already made there with the provision of bike cooperatives compelled her to select globalbike as the beneficiary of her 80th birthday fundraising.

For this campaign, nicknamed Bibi’s Birthday Bike Ride, Jeter says that "to be 80 and to still be able to do stuff — lift babies, carry my suitcases, and ride bicycles long distances— is a wonderful thing "
After training for 6 months, Jeter and her team of 18 close friends plan to set out on October 17 from Nashville, Tennessee to ride the Natchez Trace, a 444-mile recreational road and scenic parkway that goes through three states. She will end her ride in Natchez, Mississippi.

Jeter hopes to "encourage women to be strong, think big and make a difference," adding, "I hope to encourage young women that age is not an obstacle to a healthy life."

Dr. Katherine Jeter strives to make each day matter in her quest for optimal health, to give back to her community and inspire others to do the same. It was at 66, after treatment for breast cancer, that Katherine decided she wanted to make her diagnosis and recovery matter. At age 69 she began cycling and applied her Texas-size drive to the intersection of fitness and fundraising. On October 17, to celebrate her 80th birthday -- Katherine "Bibi" Jeter will ride her bike 440 miles along the Natchez Trace from Nashville, TN to Natchez, Mississippi all to raise money for globalbike, a non-profit organization supporting women-owned bike rental and repair programs in rural areas of Tanzania.
For more information, visit facebook.com/BibisBirthdayBikeRide.
Contact Name: Marisa Peacock
Contact Email: marisa@strategicpeacock.com

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