Motorcyclist killed by lightning had big heart / LJWorld.com

Archive for Sunday, April 26, 2009

Troy Gentzler was struck and killed by lightning on Highway 24 Saturday night while driving home from spending the day helping kids.

By George Diepenbrock

April 26, 2009

Minutes after Lawrence resident Troy Gentzler had visited an abuse victim Saturday in Jefferson County, he hopped onto his motorcycle.

The avid biker and member of the northeast Kansas chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse recently had combined his passions for motorcycles and helping people in need.

As Gentzler and about a dozen other chapter members headed toward Lawrence on Saturday evening on U.S. Highway 24, the group started riding through rain. Then, in an instant, a lightning bolt struck and killed Gentzler.

“You can sum it up in one word: bizarre,” Jefferson County Sheriff Jeff Herrig said.

Herrig said that just before 5 p.m. the bolt hit Gentzler, 45, who was traveling west of Perry with six other motorcyclists. Michael Robinson, 35, of Gardner, who was riding next to Gentzler, was injured, the sheriff said. Robinson was treated at a Topeka hospital and released.

Bikers Against Child Abuse is an international group that has local chapters, and its members work to support children who have been victims of physical or sexual abuse. They provide assistance in various ways, including going to court with victims for support when they have to testify.

“They do good things for the kids who are abused,” Herrig said.

Members of the northeast Kansas chapter conducted their annual April tour on Saturday, visiting victims in the area who had been with the program for several years, the chapter’s president said. They had finished their last stop before tragedy struck on the highway between Grantville and Perry.

“He was riding 60 mph. He was in a storm, and he was hit by lightning. You can put it into: What are the odds of that happening?” said the chapter’s president, known by his riding name as “Smoker.”

He requested anonymity because the chapter’s members often encounter people accused of committing both physical and sexual abuse.

Gentzler, who lived in Lawrence and worked at a Kansas City-area plant, had joined the group nearly two years ago because he wanted to help the cause. Despite his big frame, he would do his best to make the children comfortable whether they were toddler or teenagers.

“He’d get down on one knee and play with these kids,” Smoker said.

Discussion

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26 April 2009
at 5:33 p.m.

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Eride (Anonymous) says…

This is incredibly bizarre and very unfortunate.
26 April 2009
at 5:59 p.m.

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kw (Anonymous) says…

God Bless these guys and the work they do. Rest in Peace, you will be missed.
27 April 2009
at 2:41 p.m.

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justthefacts (Anonymous) says…

I don't know if it's just random, but when I pulled up this story to read it, the ad on the left was for electicians, complete with a guy doing it himself and getting “fried.” Bad taste or bad timing? If the ad is up for all to see each time they read this article, I think it might be a good idea to lose it for this one. In deference to the family and friends of someone who sounds like he was a great person.
27 April 2009
at 2:59 p.m.

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peachesncream (Anonymous) says…

Prayers and thoughts to Troys family and many friends….another brother lost.
god bless
27 April 2009
at 4:27 p.m.

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RebeccaHensley (Anonymous) says…

My heart goes out to this man's family and friends. My father was struck by lightning and died while riding a motorcycle in northern Iowa in 1994 after attending a Christian Motorcyle Association rally in Minnesota. It is a crazy thing to have happen. We just figured that with the odds of it happening, it must've just been my father's time. I'm sure Troy's fellow bikers will miss him immensely. He seems like he was a good man with a good heart. My thoughts and prayers are with those that are grieving now. (hugs)
27 April 2009
at 10:40 p.m.

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LilBitTexas (Anonymous) says…

Your B.A.C.A. brothers & sisters in Texas are in mouring with you and thinking of you. - Lil'Bit - Buffalo Creek Chapter (Texas)
1 May 2009
at 5:57 p.m.

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wildman75154 (Anonymous) says…

Loyalty, Honor and Respect to our fallen brother. The family is in our prayers.

Wilidman, Buffalo Creek Chapter, Texas