The Martha Bedal Memorial Fund generously supports the youth bicycle skills education work of the Bike Smart! program. If you wish to contribute to the fund, this can be done online or by mail.

To donate online, click here. Once at the Ecology Action donation webpage, select the Martha Bedal Memorial Fund from the pull-down list of causes.

To contribute by mail: send a check made payable to Ecology Action, with “Martha Bedal Memorial Fund” in Memo line, to:
Evan Parker
Ecology Action
877 Cedar Street, Suite 240
Santa Cruz, CA 95060
ATTN: Martha Bedal Memorial Fund

About Martha Bedal

The Martha Bedal Memorial Fund was established in memory of Martha Anne (Gaydowski) Bedal, who died in September 2009 after a long and courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. One of her many loves was not just bicycling, but teaching the joy of cycling to the young and old alike. She was one of the first volunteers to help Bike Smart! Youth Bicycle Safety Education Program get started, and continued working at Bike Smart! events until her health prevented her from participating. This Memorial Fund continues her legacy of helping people enjoy the wonderful activity of bicycling.

Diverse interests and accomplishments

Martha was involved in more than just cycling and had a positive influence on scores of people. She was born in Riverside, California, in 1948, but then her family soon moved to upstate New York and then to Florida, eventually settling in Santa Cruz in 1959. She graduated from Santa Cruz High School in 1964, and went on to San Jose State where she graduated with a BA in Medical Technology and met her future husband, Richard Bedal. They married in 1968 and lived in Scotts Valley and Santa Cruz from 1970 on.

Martha retired as a respected Medical Technologist in 1997. She was particularly proud of her ability to painlessly draw blood, accurately identify specimens she examined in a microscope and converse fluently with the doctors. She was the leader of a Girl Scout Troop from when her daughter was 8 to 16 years of age. While the Troop’s leader, their many activities included traveling to destinations such as: San Francisco, California’s Sierra Nevada Mountains, Catalina Island, and Europe. She was also a den leader for her son’s Cub Scout pack. Martha was very skilled at sewing, knitting and crocheting, making clothes, baby blankets, hats and gloves for gifts. She was a horse camp counselor, a Eucharistic minister, a great cook, and a volunteer for Martha’s Helpers. She designed the remodel of the family home, for which she often received unsolicited compliments from strangers walking by. She did all this and much more.

Passionate cyclist and educator

Around 1989, while still working, Martha started riding a bike; mostly because it made her knees feel better. She joined the Santa Cruz County Cycling Club and led the club’s Tuesday rides for two years, taking members on routes throughout the county where many had never been. But she wanted to do more—teach bicycling to new and returning cyclists. She took classes on how to teach cycling and made up her own curriculum and routes. She did it all on her own, with encouragement from her mentor, Leo Moll. In the beginning very few people showed up and some dropped out after a few classes. But she was tenacious and mostly by word of mouth her classes became very popular. Local bicycle shops referred people to her. There is a legion of law abiding cyclists on the streets thanks to her. Some of her students became cycling racers, travelers and regular commuters thanks to her mentorship.

Martha also enjoyed bicycle touring. With her husband and friends she bicycled in many parts of the world: through Spain, France, Eastern Europe, the San Juan Islands, and from Santa Cruz to Phoenix, just to name a few. Her last bicycle tour was in France just three months before she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Bike Smart! is a nonprofit organization that “encourages youth to bicycle for fun, transportation and health through hands-on bicycle education at local schools,” and was one of Martha’s favorite organizations to which she donated countless hours of her time. To honor Martha’s accomplishments as a dedicated bicycle educator, the purpose of this Memorial Fund is to continue her passion through the Bike Smart! program.

Quotes about Martha from Family and Friends

“Martha was such a special person to me and she really changed my life. Without her I would not be the happy and fulfilled person I am today. Martha encouraged me in things I felt I could not do and showed me that I can. I will never forget that or the fact that I was one of Martha's babes. She is with us whenever we meet and ride. Martha is the heart and soul of our group and she is with us always.”

“Martha was a wonderful woman and I am honored to have been her friend. I never ride my bicycle but something reminds me of Martha - who taught me in my sixties how to ride and love a bicycle again.”

“As a very young mother, she always made me feel supported, and was just an angelic image of an ideal mom, and a mentor in many ways.”

“I will forever remember Martha as a courageous and loving person. She often expressed how proud she was of her family, she loved adventures and enjoyed her community of bike friends. You made a difference in the lives of many Martha!”

“We will miss her dearly - such a great lady of many talents and with her own brand of special wisdom. She will continue to bless our lives for years to come."