John Cyprian remembered at American Legion bike rally in Butler County
BUTLER TWP — The Saturday, May 31, motorcycle ride planned by the Butler County American Legion Riders initially was a fundraiser for Veterans in Need, but it ended up also being a memorial ride for one of its organizers, a longtime veteran advocate.
Chip Hill, treasurer of the riders, said the late John Cyprian, who founded Butler County Veterans in Need and was the former Butler County Veterans Services director, probably would not have wanted the ride to be about him, even in his death. Cyprian was always giving to the veterans who sought help in the county, and the ride was an example of that attitude.
“He’d go above and beyond for every veteran,” Hill, a Navy veteran, said before the ride Saturday morning began from America Legion Post 778 on Legion Memorial Lane. “He got my benefits to 100% in only a few months.”
Cyprian, 58, of Valencia, died unexpectedly at home April 12 after a long career serving veterans.
Cyprian was the Butler County Veterans Services director for almost 30 years before he retired in 2021. He enlisted in the United States Army in 1985 and served in the military during Operation Desert Storm before he was appointed veterans services director in 1996.
On Saturday, members of American Legion Post 778 remembered Cyprian as they rode to the north of Butler County to the final stop at the Veterans in Need warehouse on Route 8 in Center Township. Hill said Cyprian was a motorcycle rider, so planning the run Saturday was one of the ways he raised money for Veterans in Need.
The American Legion Riders are also hosting a raffle, where the grand prize is a motorcycle. Marty Mitchell, a member of the riders, said raffle tickets are available until mid-August.
While raising money to service county veterans was the purpose of the event, Cyprian’s absence was felt among many of the people present who knew him. Traci Taylor, secretary of the American Legion Riders, said Cyprian was as fun-loving as he was dedicated to his career in helping veterans.
“He was just a good guy,” Taylor said.
Kate Aderman, a board member for Veterans in Need, was helping to sign in attendees of the ride Saturday. She said Cyprian was a mentor to her, and he made the nonprofit into a community that was based on aid for veterans. She noted the way she saw him “lead the board and show how much he cared about people.”
“I never knew anyone who would fight so hard for his clients the way John did,” Aderman said.
The riders planned to make a journey of about 103 miles Saturday, culminating in a party-style event at the Veterans in Need warehouse.
Hill said he was with Cyprian the day before he died, at a meeting to plan the May 31 run. Cyprian’s death was unexpected, but Hill said he was glad to take part in a project like the motorcycle run Saturday — an event that Cyprian touched before he died.
“He wanted to get me more benefits than I even knew I could have,” Hill said. “In the military, we call each other brothers because of what you all go through. But John was a brother.”
