OFF THE WIRE
BY: Suzanne McLaughlin
Source: masslive.com
Motorcyclists form a procession behind a motorcycle hearse bearing the casket of Nathan Stebbins of Ludlow at the start of a memorial ride at the Wilbraham Funeral Home on Friday afternoon.
More than 200 motorcyclists converged at the Wilbraham Funeral Home Friday afternoon to give Hells Angels member Nathan T. Stebbins his “last ride.”
Some people in the crowd put the number of bikers at more than 400, but police estimated the number was closer to 200. Police said the motorcycle ride was orderly.
The motorcyclists traveled to Palmer and back along Route 20 to honor one of their own, Nathan T. Stebbins, 25, of West Avenue in Ludlow, who died Sept. 22 as a result of injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident in Fairfield, Conn.
Those gathered at the Wilbraham Funeral Home, 2551 Boston Road, were from motorcycle groups that included Hells Angels, the Phantom Lords and the Whip City Riders.
“There are people here from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Long Island and Italy,” said a Westfield woman who declined to give her name.
She said she met Stebbins because her husband is a member of the Whip City Riders.
“Hells Angels is a good organization,” she said. “They do a lot of things for children. They hold collections for Toys for Tots.”
She added that Stebbins was devoted to his young daughter.
Stebbins leaves his mother, Doris Neal-Bump, and step-father, Carl Bump, of Ludlow; his father, Thomas Stebbins of Huntington; his fiancee, Pamela Graf, and his 2-year-old daughter, Billie Lee Stebbins, both of Ludlow.
He also leaves his siblings, Vincent and Alonzo Caputo of Ludlow, Amber Hoague of Agawam and Emily Maxwell of Franklin.
Stebbins is a 2004 graduate of Gateway Regional High School. He worked as a construction laborer and carpenter for various firms in the area. He was a member of the Hells Angels Motorcycle Club, CT Nomads.