‘Ride for Riner’ to raise awareness against drinking and driving

NAPLES, Fla.- This weekend, community members will hit the road to honor Cecil Riner, the father of four who was killed just days before Christmas in a crash involving a suspected drunk driver.

“Everything just kind of gets more real as time goes on, it’s hard,” said Jessica Riner, Cecil Riner’s wife.

She says life has been a roller coaster since the day her husband was killed in the crash along Golden Gate Boulevard.

“I couldn’t do this without my friends,” said Riner who adds she’s getting by with a lot of love and support. “It’s hard at night, you are by yourself a lot, you have time to think. I haven’t touched any of Cecil’s things, it’s just like he’s on vacation. I don’t want to think about him gone forever.”

A ride through Collier County taking place on Saturday will gather money for the family and raise awareness against drinking and driving.

“We know that Cecil was the primary breadwinner, he left behind a wife he was totally in love with and four young boys who were his world, ” said Stephanie Earnhart, manager at a Lowe’s store in south Naples.

Cecil Riner stayed with the company since he began working at Lowe’s when he was a teenager. The ride will start at the first Lowe’s Riner worked at until four years ago when he transferred to another location.

“When we began planning this, his wife was not yet at the point where she could go to that Lowe’s and that’s why we planned it for another Lowe’s,” Earnhart said.

The ride will be led by a friend who bought Riner’s truck and Riner’s quad will be displayed in the back.

“If anyone learns anything from this, it’s to not drink and drive,” Jessica Riner said.

The ride begins Saturday at noon at the Lowe’s on Airport Pulling Road and Naples Boulevard. It then finishes at the Florida Sports Park on Collier Boulevard where people will gather from 1:30 p.m.- 4 p.m. for raffles, food, and music.