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MOTORCYCLE RIDE IS ALL ABOUT VETERANS -- Red,
white and blue flags waved from the rear of
customized
Harley-Davidsons, Suzukis and hundreds of other
motorcycles at the TA Truck Stop.
Story here...
http://www.therecordherald.
com/articles/2007/06/05/
local_news/news06.txt
Story below:
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Motorcycle ride is all about the veterans
By Denise Bonura The Record Herald
GREENCASTLE - Red, white and blue flags waved from the rear of
customized Harley Davidsons, Suzukis and hundreds of other motorcycles
at the TA Truck Stop on Sunday morning as riders young and old prepared
for a 55-mile journey to the Martinsburg Veterans Affairs Medical Center
in West Virginia.
The 17th annual Operation God Bless America ride for the veterans was a
success before it began thanks to a donation of $25,000 from Wayne and
Hattie Nicarry of Camp Hill, according to A.J. Davenport, chairman of
the ride.
“My wife and I decided that life has been good to us and God has been
good to us,” Wayne Nicarry said.
“The VA hospital in Martinsburg cared for my uncle and her father, and
we thought this would be a good way to give back for what they've done
for our family.”
Nicarry said he served with the U.S. Navy for 22 years, including
service during the Vietnam War.
For the veterans
The riders raised a total of $41,000 this year that will go toward
personal items such as toothpaste and other toiletries, television sets
or “just about anything the veterans would need,” according to Chris
Lightner of Chambersburg.
“It all goes directly to the veterans,” he added.
Davenport said the ride began to raise money for troops serving during
Operation Desert Storm. However, the war ended before the first ride
began, so the coordinators decided to raise the money for the veterans.
He and his wife, Mary Anne, have led the coordination of the event for
12 years. Eight different groups - Washington County Abate, Mason-Dixon
Abate, Keystone Abate, the Goldwing Road Riders Association, Harley
Owners Group, the Red Knights, the Christian Motorcyclists Association
and the U.S. Military Veterans Motorcycle Club - also help with the
coordinating efforts.
Leader of the pack
Elton Ensor, 82, of Warfordsburg led the group through Greencastle and
down Interstate 81 south to the VA Hospital on his blue 1996 Harley
Davidson FLHT. The riders ate lunch with the veterans and presented a
check to them.
Ensor is no stranger to war efforts ... he said he has served in World
War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War.
Ensor now makes yearly trips to Walter Reed Army Medical Center in
Washington, D.C., to visit young soldiers injured in the war on Iraq.
“We shouldn't be there,” he said about the war. “These young boys are
told when to shoot and they don't understand the people giving them the
directions.”
Ensor said his favorite part of riding is the fresh air that hits you in
the face.
“It's also for the veterans,” he added.
“Bikers don't need a reason to ride. If you give them one, they'll show
up,” Davenport said. “It's not just about the money. That's just a small
part of what we do to show them (the veterans) that we care about the
freedoms they've allowed us to have.”
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Larry Scott --
