Presentation of the flag
It’s important for people to understand that every dollar they contribute to this effort directly benefits wounded vets and their families.
MADISON, WISCONSIN (PRWEB) May 18, 2015
The first leg of the Patriot Tour, a 100-day,14,000-mile journey during which motorcycle riders will carry our nation’s flag city-to-city through all 48 continental states, to raise money for wounded veterans and their families, begins in Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday, May 23, confirmed Bill Sherer, founder and executive director of the Nation of Patriots. This year’s goal is $400,000 and contributions of any size are welcome at http://www.nationofpatriots.com.
In 2014 nearly $100,000 was raised and distributed to families of wounded veterans in Wisconsin and across the U.S. “It’s important for people to understand that every dollar they contribute to this effort directly benefits wounded vets and their families. The Nation of Patriots is an entirely volunteer organization so 100 percent of the money raised benefits those for whom it is intended,” Sherer said.
As many as 150,000 riders nationwide, including at least 500 from throughout southern Wisconsin, are expected to participate in the 2015 Patriot Tour that begins at Harley-Davidson of Madison, 6200 Millpond Rd. Following an 11 a.m. flag-christening ceremony, one rider will take the flag-bearer’s oath and at noon the flag will be fastened to his motorcycle for the ride to Woodstock, Illinois. The public is welcome and encouraged to attend the opening ceremony and join the riders, Sherer said.
“The Patriot Tour is a unified tribute to each and every one of our nation’s veterans, military personnel and their families,” he said. “We understand their sacrifices and stand in awe of the contributions they have made and do make every day so that all Americans may walk free, live free, be free.”
Police escorts will accompany riders from Harley-Davidson of Madison to the Wisconsin-Illinois border. The flag will spend the night in Woodstock, before departing with riders for Elkhart, Indiana on Sunday and will travel in similar fashion, escorted city-to-city across the Continental United States for approximately the next 100 days.
On Saturday, September 5 the flag will return to Wisconsin, landing first at Harley-Davidson of Madison and then will travel 40 miles north to Beaver Dam. After a parade through the downtown it will move to Hogz N Honeez Bar & Grill east of Beaver Dam, for the homecoming ceremony and celebration. A complete routing schedule for the flag can be found at http://www.nationofpatriots.com/the-patriot-tour.html .
One Man’s Vision; 150,000 Answer the Call
The idea for the Patriot Tour came to Sherer in 2009 while riding in the eastern United States, carrying the American flag on the back of his motorcycle in support of the sacrifices that his friends, mostly veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, had made on behalf of our country. He rode all 33 states east of the Mississippi, raising money for the families of wounded veterans. Ending in Milwaukee, Sherer worked with the VA Hospital there to direct the money he had raised, to military families.
"I realized that my voice was not strong enough to rally a nation,” he said. “So I founded the Nation of Patriots. I wanted to include as many proud Americans as possible to stand with me in a collective salute of appreciation to the U.S. military."
More than 150,000 riders across the U.S., many of them veterans, have answered the Nation of Patriots’ call each spring since 2010 and volunteered to take part in the annual Patriot Tour.
Riders interested in participating locally or across the country are encouraged to pre-register at http://www.nationofpatriots.com. Each rider is asked to make a $5 donation that will be used to augment funds raised throughout the tour for distribution to the families of wounded veterans.
Founded in 2009 by Bill Sherer and headquartered in Milwaukee, the Nation of Patriots is an independent, non-partisan 501(C)3, non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide financial support to the families of wounded men and women who have volunteered their lives in the preservation, protection and future of the United States and its citizens. More information, donor opportunities, photos, video and a complete Patriot Tour schedule can be found at http://www.nationofpatriots.com.