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I like what (as I understand it) the Patriot Guard Riders are all about. Showing respect for fallen military and first responders, and shielding their families from classless idiots protesting at funerals. Does anyone here ride with them? What can you offer for input? I have been thinking about contacting them and putting in some time.
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Personally, while their intentions are no doubt good, I've never found large groups of (mostly) open-piped bikes parading thru a cemetery to be all that respectful of families/loved ones in their time of grief.
Best thing to do is go on a mission with us........look up Patriot Guard in your area. 98% Harleys will be there, but you won't find a finer bunch of folks anywhere IMO. We ride for first responders and the military. You will experience things the average person will never see, and every ride is a different adventure. Good luck...............
Best thing to do is go on a mission with us........look up Patriot Guard in your area. 98% Harleys will be there, but you won't find a finer bunch of folks anywhere IMO. We ride for first responders and the military. You will experience things the average person will never see, and every ride is a different adventure. Good luck...............
Thank you for responding. I'm glad to hear that. I'm going to get ahold of my state...is it chapter?
Toyman just google Patriot Guard Idaho and a state captain will pop up........we most likely don't have a lot of missions up that way.........I'm in SoCal where we do at least 50 a month........and sometimes 4 or 5 the same day..........
A short video of what we do.......the U tube says we have 40,000 members, that is now over 300,000 nationwide.........
Personally, while their intentions are no doubt good, I've never found large groups of (mostly) open-piped bikes parading thru a cemetery to be all that respectful of families/loved ones in their time of grief.
I would like to respectfully suggest you may have missed some key elements here:
1) They are there with the permission (and normally heartfelt thanks) of the family of the deceased.
2) The bikes are part of the patriotic procession. No bikes are running during a funeral. The riders are dismounted and honoring the ceremony. They also do not plan these to conflict with other scheduled funerals at a cemetery.
3) They are also there to keep the mourning family from having to see the Westboro loonies on occasions where those turds (and I'm insulting turds by equating the two) show up. This is certainly a VERY welcome thing at a soldier's funeral.
4) As mentioned in that news segment, the number of patriotic mourners is a comfort to these families. As a retired cop who used to attend 5+ funerals per year of brother cops in SoCal, I can tell you that talking to the families of the deceased, having a massive turnout to honor your deceased is touching and comforting. (I lost more than once buddy in my career so I know what I'm talking about)
From their own website:
Our main mission is to attend the funeral services of fallen American heroes as invited guests of the family. Each mission we undertake has two basic objectives:
1. Show our sincere respect for our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities.
2. Shield the mourning family and their friends from interruptions created by any protestor or group of protestors.
We accomplish the latter through strictly legal and non-violent means.
Last edited by Sage of Sagle; 09-17-2015 at 04:45 PM..
Reason: Added PGR's website mission statement
In North Idaho, the Patriot Guards are doing a "Help on the Home Front" mission tonight and providing a flag line at a local church for a POW/MIA ceremony. I plan to go, watch and learn.
In North Idaho, the Patriot Guards are doing a "Help on the Home Front" mission tonight and providing a flag line at a local church for a POW/MIA ceremony. I plan to go, watch and learn.
The event was a great experience. One of the speakers was a Air Force vet and POW in Viet Nam. Very touching story. The sacrifice and endurance of our military men and women, and their families, is amazing. There seemed to be a lot of appreciation for the flag line, lots of positive comments. All and all, a very humbling, rewarding and emotionally draining experience. I'm not sure I'm up for a funeral yet...I'll be a wreck. We do have an Honor Flight ceremony next week, should be a much happier note.
I wish I'd been involved a few months ago. We had a local police officer murdered by a POS in our area earlier this summer, would have been a nice way to pay respect.
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