Ghost Bike Honors Amherst Woman

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By Liz Tufts

It's not your typical make-shift memorial made up of flowers, a cross, or even candles. A ghost bike now sits at the spot where an Amherst bicyclist lost her life.

"The ghost bike represents, symbolizes a remembrance for cyclists who have been killed while riding, " says Pam Hannah of Northampton.

And now one sits at the scene where 33-year-old Misty Bassi lost her life. The U-Mass employee was hit and killed while riding her bike along University Drive in May.

Now two months later, a white bike is chained to a tree in front of the the Hangar Pub & Grill. A memorial where people can honor and remember Bassi's life. People like Pam Hannah of Northampton.

"I just felt it was really important for her friends and loved ones and everyone who passes by to see it and remember her, " adds Hannah.

Pam Hannah may not have known Bassi, but she sadly does know other cyclists who have lost their lives in similar accidents. She with the help of two other people decided a ghost bike needed to be placed here.

"I hope they will look at it and they will say wow a white bike and Google it and understand it, " says Hannah.

And curiosity is exactly what brought Bea Gervickas to the scene. She wanted to see the bike for herself and take the time to place flowers at the scene. Although she didn't know Bassi well, her husband did. He worked with her at the U-Mass Amherst.

"We would see Misty right in front of us, peddling away, " recalls Gervickas.

The ghost bikes were created in St. Louis in 2003 and they have since appeared in more than 80 cities.

The driver who hit Bassi, 75-year-old Parvin Niroomand faces multiple charges, including leaving the scene of an accident, which is a felony. She has pleaded not guilty.

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