The Ride Rolls On - Day Fifty and Points East
As we take on our eighth state, Kentucky, we look forward to a special visit with a family in Lexington, just North of our rest stop in Berea, and have our sights set on activities on the East coast - the leg we are calling Act III.
It’s also a good time to re-convey the importance of our mission. It’s easy to get caught up in The Ride itself: the scenery, the physical challenge, the video initiative and media opportunities. Matt and I spent a lot of time the past week talking about the mission itself, for families of the fallen, and how we can best execute the final 45 days - that’s right, just 45 days until our arrival to New York City on the 10-year anniversary of 9/11/01.
So with that in mind, here is an overview of the activities on the road ahead:
• Our current schedule and route is posted on The Ride site. Status will be updated daily http://teamjesse.org/logride.php
• We have firm commitments in Lexington, Kentucky (8/2), Washington, DC (8/24), Annapolis, MD (8/27-28) and New York, NY (9/11-9/13).
• In Lexington, we will be spending time with the family of Marine Corporal Nich Dieruf, USMC, who was killed in action in Iraq on April 8, 2004, 3 years to the day that SSG Williams was killed. After visiting Corporal Dieruf’s resting place, The Team will attend a Lexington Legends (farm team for Houston Astros) baseball game, where Matt and I will get the opportunity to address the crowd and throw out the first pitch. We look forward to spending time with the family of this fallen hero. We have received great support from the Lexington community since day 1.
• On August 24, we plan to visit the resting places of best friends Marine Lieutenant Travis Manion and Navy Lieutenant Brendan Looney in Arlington National Cemetery. Travis and Brendan were roommates at the Naval Academy and were both killed in combat, Travis in April 2007 in Iraq and Brendan in September 2010 in Afghanistan. Matt and I are honored to visit these two incredible individuals and say ‘thank you’ for their sacrifice in person. Many know that we are partnering with the Travis Manion Foundation on The Ride, so this is a visit that has much anticipation for the entire Team Jesse Foundation.
• In Annapolis, we are planning a marquee fundraising event on Saturday, August 27. We will also be making an appearance at the Major League Lacrosse (MLL) championship weekend on Saturday at the semi final game. For more information on Annapolis events, please contact Matt Corry at Matt@teamjesse.org
• The Ride finishes in New York City on Sunday, September 11. Matt and I will ride in from New York and immediately dismount to participate in the Travis Manion Foundation 9/11 Heroes Run (http://www.911heroesrun.com/) before getting back on our bikes and continuing to the corner of Liberty and Church streets, where I stood 10 years ago and watched a plane fly into a building, killing thousands of innocent fathers, mothers, daughters, sons, brothers, sisters and friends.
• Our final event will be at Tribeca Cinemas on Tuesday, September 13 at 6:00 p.m. We will be sending out invitations for this event early August. If you would like to be included on this list or would like additional information pertaining to this event, contact Eileen Tang at Eileen@teamjesse.org
We need your help to reach our goal for families of the fallen. We owe it to the families not only to say ‘thank you’, but also to help as many as we can given the sacrifice their loved one has made on our behalf.
Freedom isn’t free. If you would like to donate to our mission, please visit www.teamjessse.org/donate
To the limit,
/km/