Legacy Run Day 3: Honoring fallen comrades and a special bugle

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American Legion Social Media Manager Steve B. Brooks is following along or getting out ahead of the Legacy Run in what has to be a 70-foot long, 32-passenger Ford Transit, with visual journalists Lucas Carter and Clay Lomneth, to cover the 2016 Legacy Run.

 

8 a.m. – Pull over on the side of the Natchez Trace Parkway to get video/photos of the Legacy Run’s 264 bikes with some fantastic scenery in the background. The original Trace was used by American Indians and settlers; Franklin D. Roosevelt signed legislation creating the parkway in 1938. Knowledge is power.

8:29 a.m. – Turning onto MS-25 South we see a group of people standing alongside the road waving U.S. flags. It’s a preview of things to come.

8:37 a.m. – Along the main drag of Red Bay, Ala., dozens of people stand outside of local businesses waving U.S. flags and saluting the Legacy Run as it moves toward Veterans Memorial.

8:40 a.m. – Dozens of students from Red Bay High School, the city’s K-12 school, are among the hundreds of locals waiting at the memorial. Dawn Shotts and Jill Hester brought a first-grade class to watch National Commander Dale Barnett lay a wreath at the memorial. “We wanted to explain to our children the importance of the veterans … and show our support for the good deed they're doing,” Shotts said. “Red Bay is engrossed in patriotism and loyalty to one another, and we have a lot for our state, our county and our city. This is what we should do.”

8:48 a.m. Red Bay Mayor David Tiffin addresses the crowd after the wreath-laying, and State Rep. Johnny Mack Morrow reads a resolution honoring the 2016 Legacy Run.

8:52 a.m. – Department of Alabama Adjutant Greg Akers, a Legion Rider from Post 133 in Millbrook, Ala., gets a bit choked up when talking about the support Red Bay gave the Run. “An immense amount of pride,” Akers says, adding he wasn’t surprised by the showing. “Smaller towns are the heart of America. Most of our servicemembers come from small towns. (People here) understand.”

9:32 a.m. – Just before the morning gas stop we spot a group of Legionnaires standing along AL-24 holding American flags to support the ride.

11 a.m. – John Burke, state director for the Alabama Legion Riders, is waiting at Redstone Harley-Davidson in Madison for the Run to arrive. That the Run is going through his state makes Burke, a member of Post 171 in Birmingham, proud. “Finally getting it to come through the state of Alabama, and the way everyone has come together to support it, it makes you feel good that the community is behind you,” he says. “We’ve got Riders … who’ve come from all different chapters throughout the state. It’s a good deal.”

11:08 a.m. – Redstone Harley-Davidson is providing a barbecue lunch from BBQ360 for the Run’s participants. “(Harley-Davidson) and the military have always had such a close connection,” said Samantha Cox, the working manager for the dealership. “We definitely wanted to provide for (the Riders) when they came to us.”

12:15 p.m. – Rob Phelps played trumpet when he was a kid. Then he put it away. But last year, after getting a bugle that belonged to his grandfather, a World War I veteran, Phelps began playing “Taps” during wreath-laying ceremonies along the run. “The first time I played it … I squeaked a few notes,” says Phelps, a member of Post 325 in Danville, Va. “But it was just an awesome experience. I really felt like my grandfather was there with me.”

His grandfather, who joined the Legion in 1919, enlisted in the military at age 16 and was too young to do anything but become a bugler and messenger who participated in such battles as the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The bugle was passed along to Phelps past year. “It’s a great honor,” Phelps says of playing ‘Taps’ along the Run. “Our brothers and sisters that have paid the ultimate sacrifice, that goes into every note. It’s a very emotional experience for me.”

12:39 p.m. – More than $24,000 is donated to the Legacy Fund during the stop. A check for $10,133 comes from Millbook, Ala., Post 133, which lost three of its Legion Riders this year. “For us to lose three people in a year, it’s just amazing we could still raise that much,” says Post 133 ALR Director Jeff Bales. “To be able to honor those three this way feels really good.”

3:15 p.m. – We stop for gas – putting 22.3 gallons into a 23-gallon tank in Kimball, Tenn. Just so happened we stopped at a place that doesn’t necessarily specialize in selling gas. Hoping a Tennessee-Alabama Fireworks receipt gets through Finance.

3:38 p.m./4:38 p.m. – Leaving Alabama, we suddenly move ahead an hour, even though we’re in a Ford – not a DeLorean.

6:14 p.m. – The Run is headed to Post 112, where the post’s Legion family has put in 100 hours preparing for the visit. Every minute is worth it. “We’re so proud,” Post 112 Commander Lee Oliver says. “It’s a star in a crown, and we’re proud to do it.”

6:32 p.m. – Dozens and dozens of Legion family members from Post 112 and other Georgia posts are there as the ride arrives.

6:50 p.m. – Barnett and American Legion Auxiliary National President Sharon Conatser lay a wreath at the Whitfield County Veterans Memorial in downtown Dalton.

7:05 p.m. – Legacy Run Chief Road Captain Bob Sussan praises law enforcement for their help during the day. Alabama State Police provided an escort throughout the state, while Georgia took over at the state line.

7:19 p.m. – American Legion Past National Commander Bob Turner, a member of Post 112, introduces the various dignitaries at the post. He also cracks wise. “Back when I was (national) commander, we didn’t know what bikes were, much less the Legacy Run,” says Turner, national commander from 1990-1991. “We didn’t have telephones.”

7:23 p.m. – Dalton Mayor Dennis Mock presents Barnett and Conatser with keys to the city. “It’s a little bit like Pokemon,” Mock says. “You’re going to have to find out what they open.”

7:25 p.m. – Conatser will ride Wednesday’s legs on the back of a motorcycle. “I don’t ride,” she says. “But I am going to do my best to fit in.”

7:27 p.m. – Barnett thanks his aide, Dewey Moss – a member of Post 112 and a man I’ve been lucky enough to get to know a little better during the Legacy Run – for all his help this year. In a very cool and classy touch, Barnett also says, “You know I wouldn’t be here for this man,” gesturing to Turner.

7:30 p.m. – More than $13,000 is donated to the Legacy Fund, bringing the total to $477,864. Oliver also presents Barnett with a check for $6,500 for the National Emergency Fund, Barnett’s fundraising project this year. “You are to be commended,” Barnett tells the Riders. “You are the best of the best.”