Munster man killed in bicycle accident

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BY LAURI HARVEY KEAGLE
lkeagle@nwitimes.com
219.852.4311 | Monday, May 26, 2008 | 4 comment(s)

An attorney who lived in Munster was struck and killed on his bicycle early Saturday morning.

Gerald Bolkema, 53, of the 8600 block of Linden Avenue, was struck and killed at West 165th Avenue and U.S. 41 just outside Lowell, according to a spokesman for the Lake County coroner's office.

Bolkema was pronounced dead at 9:05 a.m. at St. Anthony Medical Center in Crown Point, the spokesman said. The cause of death was blunt force trauma from a motor vehicle, the spokesman said.

Lake County police are investigating. Multiple calls to Lake County police seeking more information about the accident were not returned late Sunday night.

Bolkema was an attorney with the Chicago firm of Baker & McKenzie LLP. According to the company's Web site, Bolkema was a partner in the chemicals, mining and infrastructure global industry group focusing on energy, oil and gas clients. The firm cites Bolkema's work negotiating international, multimillion-dollar oil and gas projects.

The law firm's Web site said Bolkema was a 1976 graduate of Calvin College and a 1989 graduate of the University of Chicago School of Law.

Bolkema reportedly was an avid cyclist and athlete who competed in races and participated in charity events.

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Please note: The following are comments from readers. In no way do they represent the views of The Times or Lee Enterprises. We will not edit or alter your comments, but we do reserve the right to not post or to remove comments that violate our code of conduct. No comment may contain potentially libelous statements; obscene, explicit or racist language; personal attacks, insults or threats. Terms of Service

Jane Bolkema wrote on Jun 17, 2008 8:31 AM:

" I want to respond to the concerns raised by a few people - perhaps they are not riders themselves and don't at all understand the view of a serious cyclist. Gerry safely rode thousands and thousands of miles in his 38 years of riding. He ALWAYS observed the rules of the road, chose times of day and routes when and where there was extremely little traffic and took further care for his own safety by how he rode and what he wore so he'd be highly visible. On the early Sunday morning he was killed, those things were true. He was riding on the shoulder, which he always did when possible, his route had ample room for vehicular traffic, and he was wearing a bright yellow vest. Even on rural roads some mention, there is plenty of room to pass a rider because there is so little traffic. Those of us who drive can always afford what is rarely more than a few seconds if we actually have to wait to pass a cyclist. I urge each of you to take great care, drive alert, and share the roads we all pay to use. "

Horrified wrote on May 27, 2008 5:18 PM:

" I drove past the accident minutes after it happened and I was horrified by what I saw. It was obvious that there was nothing we could do to help. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family and friends. "

Braden wrote on May 26, 2008 9:52 AM:

" It was on Sunday morning, not Saturday... "

adriel wrote on May 26, 2008 9:19 AM:

" This man was an athlete who had many miles on the bicycle, murdered by a car. Not some crazy college student breaking traffic laws left and right. I hope the driver loses his license for a while. If this driver does not get charged, there needs to be a public outrage. "

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