Veterans ride to remember POW’s Sunday

Expect to see — and hear — thousands of motorcycles Sunday, as Rolling Thunder roars into Washington, D.C., in support of the nation’s prisoners of war, service members who are missing in action and veterans’ issues.

The annual demonstration ride through the streets of the nation’s capital sends a “strong and direct message to the United States government that regardless of what they feel, the American public, which is us, we want a full accounting of the people who have not come back, not just from the Vietnam War, but from all wars,” said Art Foss, who heads up Rolling Thunder Inc., Chapter 3 in Virginia, headquartered in Dumfries.

“Rolling Thunder is not a motorcycle club. We advocate the POW/MIA issue. We educate the public and update them,” explained Foss, who said that this year’s event is expected to be even more meaningful in light of the recovery of the remains of Iraq War POW Staff Sgt. Matt Maupin in March. The event is hosting Maupin’s family, and the families of Pvt. Bryon W. Fouty and Sgt. Alex R. Jimenez, who were captured in Iraq on May 12, 2007.

The organization took its name from the bombing campaign dubbed Operation

Rolling Thunder that rocked North Vietnam in 1965. Foss said that many people are under the misconception that the group concentrates its efforts solely on veterans who are unaccounted for while serving in Vietnam.

“We also encompass World War I, World War II, Korea, any conflict where our people have come up missing and unaccounted for, right into the present,” he said.

Incorporated in 1995, Rolling Thunder Inc. is a non-profit organization with more than 88 chartered chapters throughout the United States. Hundreds of thousands of participants are expected to gather in the Pentagon parking lots beginning at 7 a.m. on May 25. The ride begins at noon and ends at the Lincoln Memorial, where speakers and musical tributes round out the event. Former Congressman Bill
Hendon, R-N.C., co-author of “An Enormous Crime,” an account of abandoned American POW/MIAs in Southeast Asia, is scheduled to be the keynote speaker for Sunday’s program.

In addition, actor John Amos, star of the ABC television show Men in Trees, NBC’s West Wing, CBS’ Good Times and the miniseries Roots, is also slated to participate in the weekend’s events. He will ride his motorcycle from the Pentagon to the Lincoln Memorial and will deliver a dramatic reading of “Gen. Co”

“As a veteran, he understands the need to keep POW/MIA and other veterans issues at the forefront, particularly in a time of war, when everyone wants the problem to go away. As long as even one of our troops is unaccounted for, or if those who return are not given the highest level of respect for their service, Rolling Thunder will keep up its fight. We’re glad to have John Amos in there with us, ” said Artie Muller, founder and national executive director of Rolling Thunder Inc., in a press release.

“People forget that for families of troops left behind, there is no closure,” Amos said in the release. “Rolling Thunder makes sure that the soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines who put their lives on the live are never forgotten. I’m a veteran myself, so I’m only too happy to lend my name and my presence to this effort.”

Foss will not only be in charge of the Pentagon parking lots next Sunday, he is also responsible for Friday night’s candlelight ceremony at the Vietnam War Memorial which gets under way at 9 p.m. He estimates that more than 850,000 will take part in the weekend’s events.

“They come from all over,” Foss said. “They come from California, Alaska, Florida, Tennessee, the Carolinas. It just keeps getting bigger and bigger every year. It’s just a good wholesome family environment for one main issue, our veterans who are unaccounted for, our POWs, the missing in action.”

A group of riders is expected to leave for the Pentagon from East Coast Harley Davidson in Dumfries around 9:30 a.m., he added.

For more information on Rolling Thunder, visit its Web site at
rollingthunder1.com.

Fast Facts• May 23: Candlelight Vigil at 9 p.m. at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. Rolling Thunder chapters leave as a group from the Hyatt Regency Crystal City, 2799 Jefferson Davis Hwy., for the Wall at 8:30 p.m.    Parking is on Henry     Beacon Drive
• May 24: Harley-Davidson of Washington Barbecue, 9407 Livingston Road, Fort Washington, Md., 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Group departs from Hyatt Regency at 10 a.m.
Community barbecue in honor of riders and supporters of Rolling Thunder at American Legion Post 28 at 17934 Liming Lane in Triangle.
Saluting Our Troops from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Reflecting Pool across from the Lincoln Memorial, Washington, D.C. Speakers and musical tribute.
Hospitality Night at the Hyatt Regency in Crystal City at 8 p.m. Honors families of POW/MIAs, Gold Star/Blue Star families and wounded veterans from Walter Reed Army Hospital.
• May 25: Rolling Thunder riders begin gathering at the Pentagon parking lots (Army-Navy Drive and Fern Street) at 7 a.m. Ride through Washington, D.C., begins at noon. Ride ends at the Lincoln Memorial, where speakers and musical tributes round out the event.