Doc, a burly man with silver skeleton rings and tattoos across his arms, has more children’s books on his Kindle than anything else. He has read them over the phone to one of his honorary kids every night for the past year and a half to help the child fall asleep.

Doc is the president of the New Hampshire chapter of Bikers Against Child Abuse, an international group that leverages the stereotype of the intimidating, tattooed biker to protect children who are victims of trauma and abuse.

“That’s what our whole organization relies on, you know, the principle of ‘we are scarier than their perpetrator,’ ” said Jester, another member of the New Hampshire chapter, which is based out of Goffstown.

The group’s mission is to create a safer environment for abused children by using their physical presence.

“We do not condone the use of violence or physical force in any manner; however, if circumstances arise such that we are the only obstacle preventing a child from further abuse, we stand ready to be that obstacle” is how the organization describes its philosophy on its website.

BACA is a registered non-profit organization with chapters across the United States and around the world, including in Australia, Germany, Portugal and the United Kingdom. They have over 300 chapters in a7 different countries.

Members go by their club names primarily to avoid getting subpoenaed or legally involved in children’s cases, but as established organizations, each chapter has a public footprint. For example, the New Hampshire branch was established as non-profit in 2001 and dissolved in 2021. It listed New Hampshire residents as its leaders, including Cleve Burbage as president, Derreck Wells as vice president, Betsy Cook as treasurer and Donovan Cook as director.

The organization started in Utah in 1995, when 27 bikes rode around to visit wounded children and initiate them into a their new biker family.

After the first official chapter was formed, the idea spread and chapters popped up in Oklahoma, Missouri and Texas, then across the U.S. and abroad.

New Hampshire was the sixth chapter, loosely starting in 2000, but the group still struggles to get the word out about what they do.

“A lot of people still don’t know who we are,” said Jester.

Members of the state’s law enforcement community don’t have much to say about the group positive or negative. Concord Police Chief Bradley Osgood said he wasn’t familiar with Bikers Against Child Abuse. The state’s child advocate, Cassandra Sanchez, said she hasn’t had any dealings with them, either. The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office had no comment.

Getting involved

BACA members first hear about children who would benefit from the group through their guardians or caregivers. They spread their name through counselors and social workers and set up tables at various community events.

When a case comes in to the New Hampshire hotline, (603) 457-4KID, it is then presented to the board to determine if it fits BACA’s mission to support victims of child abuse.

If it does, members will then meet the child.

No fewer than two members will visit the child, per BACA policy, in a safe place and introduce the concept of an honorary family of bikers that are there to be called upon in a time of need.

Their program can take some getting used to, and it is not for everyone. But for those children and guardians who choose to proceed, BACA initiates a “level 1” intervention. That’s when the whole chapter gets involved.

During an intervention, the entire New Hampshire chapter will ride to the child’s location of choice. However, a loud swam of motorcycles and bikers can be a lot for a child to absorb.

Swerve’s son has selective mutism and was terrified when BACA first showed up at their home.

“He did go back and would not come near them, but they had a kid’s summer party and he watched all the bikers playing with all the kids, and by the end of that party, he was joining in and loved them,” said Swerve.

At the group meeting, BACA will present the child with a patch, stickers and a photograph of the child and their biker family. This photo represents a new awareness for the child — something that reminds them, “I am not alone, and you don’t want to mess with my family,” reads the BACA website.

The whole point of their presence is to be seen. The leather jackets, black boots and silver chains are intentional, meant to “empower children to not feel afraid of the world in which they live,” according to the website.

But regardless of their exteriors, these bikers say they will do anything for the kids who need them.

Becoming a ‘primary’ lifeline

People who are interested in joining the organization come to three meetings as a “hangaround,” according to Doc. After some time, if BACA likes the individual and they like BACA back, the group runs an FBI background check. Those who pass can stay for all meetings and begin a minimum of one year of training to be eligible, not entitled, for a BACA patch.

“The training pretty much involves two facets. One’s dealing with the kids, how to act in court, how to be a primary. And then the other is more, you know, the organizational structure and the things that go with that,” said Coach.

Members must attend 80% of mandatory events, which include monthly meetings, parties for the kids, a 100-mile ride and a level 1 interventions.

BACA kids are assigned two primaries at their level 1 who are on-call 24/7, serving as their parent figures in the organization.

When Jester visited one of his BACA kids in the hospital for various operations, he arrived dressed as a human taco, her favorite food.

The other patch member who was coming to visit the child was an hour late, so Jester sat waiting for his fellow BACA member in full costume.

“I’m sitting in the reception room, all these kids come to sit on my lap dressed as a taco,” he said.

Doc is the primary to 29 kids between his active and inactive cases, all with different needs. Some children don’t ask for a lot of contact. For others, their BACA primaries are their everything.

“As a primary, you know, you bleed a little bit each day when you deal with these kids,” said Jester.

Court presence

One of the most powerful services that BACA provides is escorting children to court, where they often confront their abusers face to face.

“That’s probably the strongest thing we can do, is back the kids up in court,” said Jester. “They see a sea of BACA vests out there, you know, they focus on us.”

This was the case for Swerve and her children.

Before Swerve was a member herself, she met Jester at a motorcycle swap meet that she attended with her daughter and her daughter’s boyfriend, who rode motorcycles.

She loved their mission and asked them to come to court with her and her children, both of whom were victims of child abuse.

“My children were not even willing to write their impact statements, and then their primary came and sat with them and helped them work through it to figure out what they wanted to say, told them how important it was, because they’ve seen cases where they get a better sentence just based on their impact statement,” said Swerve.

BACA filled up not only the courtroom but the entire upstairs floor of the building.

When Swerve’s daughter turned 18, she wanted to join the organization that uplifted her, and Swerve joined alongside her.

Jester told another story of a child who was terrified to read his impact statement in court. BACA rehearsed and practiced with him for weeks leading up, and on the court date, a biker stood on either side of him while he read his statement aloud.

For the children, having BACA in court means comfort and strength. For BACA members, it is often the most emotionally taxing part.

“You’re watching a 5-, 6-year-old, 7-year-old, 13-year-old person up on the stand, and some defense attorney is trying to trip them up or make them say stuff to get them rattled, and they’re crying and stuff like that. That’s a lot to take in,” said Doc.

When a child is free from abuse, their mission has been met.

“There’s no other organization that does what we do,” said Jester. “And who else would do it? Who else can do it?”

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