Tarbi family holds 2nd annual memorial bike ride for Dylan
BUFFALO TWP -- It has been more than three years since Robin Tarbi lost her 13-year-old son, Dylan, in a traffic accident, and for her, the scars have not yet fully healed, and may never heal.
“It’ll never go away, but we just look for ways to give back to the community and to make good come out of a bad situation,” Tarbi said.
One of those ways was the second annual memorial bike ride Sunday, Sept. 13 at Buffalo Creek Nature Park -- part of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail.
Tarbi said the choice of a bike ride to honor Dylan was appropriate, as her son was an outgoing child who loved sports and the great outdoors -- and especially loved riding on the Butler-Freeport Community Trail.
“He loved to ride bikes, and he loved this trail,” Tarbi said. “He would ride bikes year-round. Even in the snow, he would ride his bike. So this is just to encourage people to go outside, enjoy nature, and ride the bike or even walk the trail.”
The route of the memorial ride started at the Monroe Road Trailhead and took participants past a memorial bench with Dylan’s name on it, across Bear Creek, and onto Sarver Road before coming back the other way, a distance of approximately 6 miles.
Through raffles and food and drink sales, the memorial bike ride sought to raise money for the Dylan Tarbi Foundation, a recently launched nonprofit that distributes funds to charitable causes across Western Pennsylvania. Among the causes funded by the foundation is the Deer Lakes School District’s Backpack Initiative, which provides schoolchildren in need with extra food for the weekend at no charge.
“We've given money to the Freeport Community Library and to the Freeport middle school and high school. They (the schools) used it for their ski club, because Dylan was a skier and loved to downhill ski,” Tarbi said. “We have given to the Freeport Baseball Association, because Dylan played baseball for them.”
Last year’s bike ride raised roughly $2,000 for the foundation, Tarbi said.
Although Dylan has been gone for three years, he has managed to bring life to many others since his death. Since his family opted to make his body available for organ and tissue donation through the Center for Organ Recovery and Education (CORE), dozens of recipients have benefited.
“His left eye was able to give sight to an 18-year-old,” Tarbi said. “His right eye was able to give sight to a 47-year-old person. He donated 53 grafts of tissue, and 52 of those have already been transplanted and given to other people. Most recently, on May 5th, 2026, Dylan's heart valve was transplanted at the University of Alberta in Canada, so he is international now.”
Two organizations, Donate Life and CORE, were at the event to promote the benefits of organ and tissue donation.
“Dylan saved many lives through his gifts of tissue donation, and it's incredibly important that people consider signing up to be an organ donor or learning more about the cause,” said Nicole Lazaro, program coordinator for CORE.
Also appearing at the CORE and Donate Life tent to promote organ donation through their own story were representatives of the family of Jacob Grady.
“My son passed away five and a half years ago, and he was able to be an organ donor,” said Jacob’s mother, Laurie Grady. “He saved five lives and was able to help roughly 60 others with tissue donation.”
