Fitzgerald Allen is an organizer of the Rick Graham Diabetes Awareness Memorial Ride. He was with Graham when Graham had his motorcycle accident.

Here's a first person account of his experience and his connection to the memorial ride.

What hurts me the most: I have diabetes in my family.

Rick was a friend of mine. I never knew he was a diabetic; he kept that to himself.

The night that he passed, he was on his way to this beautiful dinner date. And I remember him saying he was hungry but he opted not to eat because he wanted to wait until he got home for the dinner date.

But if I would've known he was a diabetic, with my education, I wouldn't have allowed that. I would've said, "Listen, you put something in your system now and you'll still have something left when you get there."

Cause that's what happens in that moment: in the flash of a second you could go into a bad, bad coma and that's what happened on his way home right next to me. He passed out and went to the doctor.

And it hurts me to this day.

We're getting older but don't be ashamed, when we go out on our rides, to admit that you have a physical situation that you need to pay attention to. Let someone know. I could help you. And I could pay attention to you.

We're all strong, big guys, but at some point we could still use that extra help to look out for us.

We got the old school parents and grandparents that grew up and don't believe in the modern technology for medicines. And that's the biggest thing when they have diabetes that hurts them is not acknowledging and accepting it that hurts them.

I've had grandparents on both sides, amputees, little by little, because they were stubborn. They would not accept it and understand it and learn it and fight with it. They just went against it and just literally went away.

We can save just one from going down that road.

When I came to Onset I realized that their culture had the same situation as my southern root culture. They were experiencing the same stubbornness, the same denial. And it's pretty much like a silent killer. It will take you out.

I remember when I was eight years old I went down south to see my grandfather get an amputated leg. And I'd never seen that.

They're saying they're going to cut off his leg and I'm like a little kid, like, "why are they cutting off my grandpa's leg?"

That was my first introduction, that way.

Then my other introduction was, I loved motorcycles since I was a kid. I've been riding since I was a kid and I know a majority of these people on the back of my shirt (in reference to the memorial ride shirt listing names of fallen riders).

When they hear us speaking strong, okay yes, it is to come and have a good time, but we also gotta know our history and know why we're here.