Department of Maryland donates $235,000 during ride’s kickoff event in South Boston, Va.
Ten years ago, the American Legion Department of Maryland started its Gold Star Legacy Run in order to fundraise for the annual national Legacy Run. In the previous nine years, those donations totaled $765,000.
This year, Gold Star Legacy Run Co-Founder/Co-Chairman Joe Gladden set a goal that he admitted was probably out of reach: $235,000 to bring the ride’s 10-year total to $1 million raised.
And on Saturday night, participants on the 2025 Legacy Run gathered at American Legion Post 8 in South Boston, Va., learned of what the Maryland American Legion Family is capable.
Gladden and a large contingent of American Legion Riders presented Legion Family national leadership with a check for $235,000. It resulted in a large applause in a packed Post 8 for the Legacy Run’s kickoff event and got the ride off to a strong start.
“We started the Maryland Gold Star Legacy Run 10 years ago,” said Gladden, who served as Sons of The American Legion national commander from 2013 to 2014. “We set a goal this year which I really never thought we would hit. This is only done through a Legion Family coming together, recognizing the true need of our organization – our veterans and our children.”
Maryland’s donation sends this year’s Legacy Run on the road already with more than $256,000 raised for the Legion’s Veterans & Children Foundation (VCF). Through the foundation’s funding, the Legion’s Temporary Financial Assistance grants feed and house children of military personnel and veterans facing urgent, unexpected hardships. These grants prevent eviction, keep the power on and fulfill basic needs to hold a family together through difficult times.
The VCF also covers training and accreditation costs for American Legion claims experts who provide free representation for veterans and families applying for disability benefits, survivor assistance, GI Bill opportunities and more.
“We have a goal of raising $1.2 million for the VCF,” Legacy Run Chief Road Captain Ken Nadeau said. “And I have no doubt we’ll do it.”
Saturday’s event included a briefing by Nadeau, as well as remarks from Sons of The American Legion National Commander Joseph Navarrette – himself a New Mexico Legion Rider – and Department of Virginia Commander Scott Maddrea.
Navarrete, who will be a passenger on Sunday’s portion of the Legacy Run, shared that the ride had the support of his record-breaking organization. “On behalf of the now history-breaking 400,000 members, I’d like to welcome you all here,” he said. “I just want to thank each and every one of you for coming out here and being part of this historic event – not just from a Sons perspective, but from a Legion Family perspective.
“We have come together in ways we cannot even imagine. As we look at everything that’s going on and happening in this world today, this is what we need. Family.”
Maddrea, meanwhile, showed his sense of humor. “I walked in here and I thought, ‘It has been a long time we’ve seen this kind of turnout for a general membership meeting,’” he said.
During the kickoff event, American Legion Riders National Advisory Committee Chairman Mark Clark asked how many first-time participants were on the ride. Dozens of hands were raised.
“If you have any anxiety about it, if you’re concerned about that pace and all that kind of stuff, I want you to know that you have nothing to worry about,” Clark told the newcomers. “The people that you’re going to be riding with are the best motorcycle riders in the world. I know that because it says ‘American Legion Riders’ on their back. And those folks that have come back year after year know exactly what the rhythm of this ride looks like.
“They’re going to help you get settled into that rhythm. They’re going to help you get comfortable in it. And by the end of this thing, you’re going to have an experience of a lifetime.”
Follow the 2025 Legacy Run on social media using the hashtag #LegacyRun2025 on Facebook, X, Instagram and LinkedIn.
- Riders