Sylvia’s Ghost Bike

By Michael K McIntyre
Originally posted on Cleveland.com

A truck mowed down Sylvia Bingham in September, killing her as she rode her bicyle on Prospect Avenue headed to work at the offices of Hard Hatted Women, Inc.

The Yale graduate’s ghost bike, though, lives on.

The white bike propped on the corner of Prospect Avenue and East 21st Street is still decorated with flowers and a number of bicycle helmets. (Though she was a proponent of helmets, Bingham was not wearing hers at the time of her death.)

Jim Sheehan of the Ohio City Bicycle Co-op, which put up the memorial, said people regularly add helmets, turning the memorial into a sort of public art display. The helmets, he said, can be taken by those who need them, in keeping with Bingham’s giving spirit.

But helmets aren’t the only issue. Bingham’s family has established a fund in the name of their daughter, a California native in Cleveland for a yearlong stint as an Americorps Vista volunteer, to demand the right for people to bike safely and to educate people about how to share the road.

The driver who hit Bingham, Herschel Roberts, has been charged with aggravated vehicular homicide and driving while under the influence.

By Stan Donaldson
Originally posted on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — A 61-year-old Cleveland man was indicted Thursday for vehicular homicide and driving while under the influence in a Sept. 15 accident that killed a 22-year-old bicyclist, the Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office said.

Herschel Roberts was also indicted for failure to stop after an accident. Prosecutors said that Roberts drove a 2005 Peterbilt Straight truck near Prospect Avenue and East 21st Street when he struck Sylvia Bingham and left the scene.

Roberts’ truck was found an hour later in the 1100 block of East 40th Street. Police said he tested positive for marijuana.

He is scheduled to be arraigned on Nov. 2.

Bringham, a Yale University graduate, was killed as she rode from Ohio City to work at the Hard Hatted Women office, where she helped tradeswomen become mentors.

Sylvia working for Hard Hatted Women

By Ilana Seager, Staff Reporter
Originally posted on Yale Daily News

Sylvia Bingham ’09, a Yale graduate who was passionate about social justice and the environment, died Tuesday morning. She was 22.

Bingham was en route to her job in Cleveland shortly before 9 a.m. when a truck collided with her bicycle. She passed away at St. Vincent Charity Hospital soon after. The truck driver did not stop, but police located him that afternoon using information provided by witnesses. No charges had been filed as of Tuesday afternoon.

A California native, Bingham moved to Cleveland after graduating to work at the organization Hard Hatted Women, which helps to lift women out of poverty. She described herself on LinkedIn, a networking Web site, as being passionate about eliminating urban poverty and creating job opportunities in the skilled trades.

“Eventually I’d like to see urban, sustainable agriculture generate high-wage, high-skilled green jobs in our cities,” she wrote.

It was this passion that flowed out of Bingham in all aspects of her life. Spending long hours working at the Yale Farm, pursuing a double major in French and sociology, or cooking for her friends, Bingham was an inspiration to those around her. As her friend Tommy Crawford ’09 described, she “rallied others around her to service” and encouraged them to “look at the community they live in and see how they can help or get involved.”

“Being with Sylvia, being near her, was a privilege, a gift, an event,” Adam Gardner ’09 wrote in an e-mail. “For some reason, she chose to come into our lives, and we will never forget her spirit, her beauty, and the generosity that inspired her to share herself so completely with us.”

As a student, Bingham exhibited a deep commitment to her curricular and extra-curricular pursuits. For her senior project about public housing on Dixwell Avenue and New Urbanist planning, she conducted extensive original research. Professor Hannah Brueckner, the director of undergraduate studies for sociology who got to know Bingham during her senior year, described her as a “fearless intellectual, a skilled field worker, and a committed activist.”

Bingham believed that people could make a difference in the world and devoted her life to social justice and environmental issues, her college roommate Lucia Diaz-Martin ’09 said.

She was described as kind-hearted and effervescent, someone who cared deeply for her friends and family. Bingham would drop anything for her friends, Anna Parks ’09 said.

“She showed up on my birthday with a box of dainty little madeleines that she had baked for me,” Parks said. “I think that cookie and that act represent her persona perfectly: she was bursting with creativity and was a teeny, quirky fashionista.”

Another college roommate, Molly Fischer ’09, said Bingham made their apartment at 67 Edgewood Ave “the coziest little home in the world” last year. A talented chef with a colorful palette, Bingham enjoyed throwing dinner parties for her friends.

“We had the best house meals and dinner parties, and Sylvia was the one who was behind all that, lurking in the kitchen,” Fischer said. “You couldn’t ask for someone better to live with than Sylvia.”

To all those who crossed her path, Bingham took time to get to know the people around her and could connect with all types of people. “Sylvia was a beautifully unique girl with an accepting heart and open mind,” Josh Helmrich ’09 wrote in an e-mail. “She was at ease in any crowd, and could get along with anyone (while being loved by everyone).”

Timothy Dwight College Dean John Loge, Bingham’s dean, said Bingham was a memorable student and will be sorely missed. “I remember Sylvia very well,” he said. “She is the kind of person one remembers: spirited, independent, lively, sassy, intelligent. She was really the light of life itself.”

Danika Fears contributed reporting.

Orginally posted on New Haven Safe Streets Coalition

News today of a tragic loss in Cleveland, Ohio, at the hands of a hit-and-run truck driver. The local Fox News affiliate reports that Cleveland Police say 22-year-old Sylvia Bingham was riding in the curb lane of Prospect Avenue at East 21st Street around 9 A.M., just a few blocks from where she was to start work that morning. A large truck turning onto East 21st hit Bingham, knocking her off of her bike and running over her. The truck didn’t stop (though the driver was later found).

Fox also features an interview with Sylvia’s colleague and photos of the scene, which is clearly not a “complete street” despite being in the heart of a dense urban district.

Details are still sketchy, but unfortunately, the facts of the story sound painfully similar to a 2006 incident in which Alex Capelluto (who was one class ahead of Sylvia at Yale) was killed by a truck while bicycling in West Haven, on the way back to campus from the Yale Boathouse.

A native of California, Sylvia had just moved from New Haven to Cleveland to serve as an AmeriCorps volunteer, and was extremely passionate about improving her new city. Until her recent move, she had frequently been observed bicycling around New Haven. More about Bingham from Cleveland.com:

The 22-year-old Yale University graduate was killed Tuesday as she rode her bicycle to work at the Hard Hatted Women office, where she helped tradeswomen become mentors.

“She rode her bike to work from Ohio City to promote being green and encouraged others to do the same,” said Terri Burgess Sandu, executive director of Hard Hatted Women in Cleveland. “I only knew her for a short time, but she was everything — the shining example of what is best in American adults.”

“I am passionate about eliminating urban poverty, particularly by creating job opportunities in the skilled trades,” Bingham described herself, on her LinkedIn page.

On Sylvia’s intelligence and excitement about cities, New Haven historian Anstress Farwell wrote:

I was lucky to meet Sylvia, and witness the blooming growth of a person of exceptional intelligence and a good heart. She was taking a course with Doug Rae, and contacted me when scouting for a local development project to research. She chose Dixwell Plaza. In addition to reading about the history and architecture of New Haven’s redevelopment period, she interviewed store owners and customers about their use of the place. She had great talent for field work because she could put herself in other people’s shoes. She was destined to do great work in the world. Her death is a tragic loss.

Also see coverage by the Yale Daily News. Another Yale Daily News post interviews students and faculty about her life:

Bingham, who just moved to Cleveland for a job at organization that helps impoverished women, was a vivacious and dedicated woman – an inspiration to all who crossed paths with her. Effervescent, vivacious, and compassionate, Bingham lived her ideals, striving to improve the world while always taking the time to care for her friendships.

By Karl Turner
Originally posted on Cleveland.com

CLEVELAND, Ohio — Sylvia Bingham only lived in Cleveland for a short time, but she was determined to make a difference in the community.

The 22-year-old Yale University graduate was killed Tuesday as she rode her bicycle (a previous version of this story misidentified her vehicle) to work at the Hard Hatted Women office, where she helped tradeswomen become mentors.

She was run over by a 2005 Peterbilt shortly before 9 a.m. at East 21st Street and Prospect Avenue.

The truck driver did not stop, but police found him a short time later on East 40th Street, thanks to information provided by witnesses. Police questioned the driver to determine if he was aware that he had hit the woman and to find out how the accident happened.

No charges had been filed Tuesday afternoon.

Bingham came to Cleveland after studying French and sociology at Yale. The 2009 graduate was passionate about people and the environment. Her father, Stephen Bingham, said his daughter planned to make America a greener place by working to repair the environment.

She worked at Hard Hatted Women through the AmeriCorps Vista program.

“She rode her bike to work from Ohio City to promote being green and encouraged others to do the same,” said Terri Burgess Sandu, executive director of Hard Hatted Women in Cleveland. “I only knew her for a short time, but she was everything — the shining example of what is best in American adults.”

Her friends and co-workers talked about the young woman’s energy and self-sacrifice, which she expressed most of her life.

“I am passionate about eliminating urban poverty, particularly by creating job opportunities in the skilled trades,” Bingham described herself, on her LinkedIn Web page. “Eventually I’d like to see urban, sustainable agriculture generate high-wage, high-skilled green jobs in our cities. It’s exciting to see the proliferation of farms [and] in Cleveland’s abandoned lots.

She worked or volunteered in similar jobs in other cities while in high school and college. Stephen Bingham said his daughter was excited about living in Cleveland. She had recently moved in with her best friend from high school.

“She was not sure of her career path,” he said. “She was so happy. She had this wonderful job, her best friend was there. She was doing what she always did; she was helping people.”

Bingham said he hoped that, even in death, his daughter can teach people one final lesson.

“I hope people put the accent on safety,” he said. “It’s very dangerous out there for people on bicycles and people need to be careful. I don’t know if she was wearing a bicycle helmet, but the doctor said it would not have made a difference anyway.”

Police confirmed that she was not wearing a helmet at the time of the accident. There have been several recent fatal accidents involving bicycle riders in Northeast Ohio, including a 65-year-old Cleveland man and a 13-year-old Green boy. Neither wore helmets at the time of their deaths.

The Sylvia Bingham Fund will help Americans demand the ability to walk or cycle safely to work, school, church or shops. The Fund will promote safety for cyclists and pedestrians by educating drivers about sharing the road with cyclists and pedestrians and educating cyclists on defensive personal safety techniques. The Fund will also work with others to encourage state and federal transportation agencies, city and county planners, legislators and policy makers to provide for cyclist safe zones and other engineering controls in areas of high traffic to reduce the risk of injury.

Originally posted on newsnet5.com

CLEVELAND — A recent college graduate who just moved to the Cleveland area three weeks ago was killed Tuesday after being struck while riding her bike downtown.

Sylvia Bingham, 22, was riding her bike across East 21st Street down Prospect Avenue when she was hit by a truck.

Bingham’s boss, Terry Burgess Sandu, said the Yale graduate started working at Hard Hatted Women in Cleveland on Aug. 24.

Police said Bingham was on her way to work when she was struck near Cleveland State University’s Wolstein Center.

She was rushed to St. Vincent Charity Hospital, where she died at 9:10 a.m.

Police said the driver of the truck took off, but police found and questioned him Tuesday afternoon.

Bingham, a native of California, moved to Cleveland to volunteer with Americorps Vista. She was donating a year of her life to help women climb out of poverty.

“This is a young woman with many choices, but with close friends here, she chose Cleveland and she wanted to make a difference for a year,” said Burgess Sandu.

Bingham recently told her boss how much she liked Cleveland.

“We just talked yesterday about what she liked about Cleveland, and the lake and the things we take for granted. She talked about the cost of living and how much she liked her apartment and other Vista member,” said Burgess Sandu.

In her resume, Bingham wrote that she was dedicated to imagining and creating a better world.

Police said Bingham was not wearing a helmet.

No charges have been filed at this time against the driver of the truck, who works for a local electric company, but the investigation continues.