Indiana Veterans Home – West Lafayette, Indiana
Wednesday May 22nd, Michigan City, IN (Day Nine) 
IN State Coordinator: Dan Kuepker, aka Lugnut
OH State Coordinator: Tony Cunningham, aka Squirt
Sgt. Steven Strasheim age 27 of Central City Nebraska died January 18 1992. Steven was another victim of the depressing storms of hopelessness that lead people to end their own life. At the time he was on the Central City police force. But before that he spent 7 years in the Army from 1984 to1990. Strasheim spent time in Panama during the time of Manuel Noriaga’s capture. He was also involved in “Operation Desert Shield” while in Saudi Arabia. Survived by his wife Charlene, his parents, a brother, and a sister.
This morning was a more relaxed morning than some in the last few days, since we didn’t have KSU (kickstands up) until 8am. This gave us plenty of time to visit with the American Legion Post 451 in Michigan City. The crew in the kitchen did a wonderful job of breakfast—with fresh fruit. Also, a special guest speaker was an Indiana State Senator who had close personal ties to veterans. He spoke from his heart and touched all. And Jerry recognized Mike Stupar, this year’s new Indiana State Coordinator.
Sweetness read today’s tribute and Chaplain Wayne read his message, giving us all things to ponder while riding today.
Schools, schools, schools. We were escorted by the Indiana Police through the heartland, the small towns off the beaten path to see kids at schools. The first we did a drive-thru of the parking lot lined with kids waving and cheering. The second the kids lined the playgrounds and fields that bordered the road as we drove slowly to wave back. The final school, West Central School, we stopped the bikes and mingled among the kids and teachers in the parking lot. Very informal, but great connections with both kids and their teachers. One in particular:
Jim, an NVAR road guard, was approached by a young boy, “Sir, would you please take my flag with you to Washington DC?” He held up his 5”x7” flag on a stick, as an offering to our veterans on Memorial Day. Jim agreed and accepted his flag. At that point several others moved closer to Jim, each extending their hands with their flags and repeating the same sentiments. With a fistful of flags in his left hand, Jim addressed the group, “We will be visiting some veterans here in Indiana this morning. Would it be okay if I handed them out to these veterans?” The first young boy said, “Yes sir, thank you sir,” while the others chimed in their agreement. Then Jim turned back to the first young boy, holding up the one flag in his right hand, and said, “And I’ll take this one to Washington D.C.” The young boy looked up at Jim, a smile lighting up his face, “Thank you sir.”
The road into the Indiana Veterans Home was again lined with flags. The weather was perfect for a large group of vets to join us outside in the pergola. Other riders went inside to visit those who couldn’t come outside. The recipients of the two Colfax quilts were Grace Wolf and Maureen Falwell. Both were wives of servicemen, Air Force and Army. They said they are so grateful for the VA benefits extended to spouses. They named their favorite activities as bingo, cards, puzzles, and VFW sponsored events.
Two Freedom Medals were presented, one to the events coordinator at the Home. The other to Joe, a Navy veteran. One of the workers quietly whispered, “Joe had a severe head injury.” I had already concluded that much since his verbal skills were very limited. However, I also noticed Joe had a tablet preloaded with statements and pictures of his family, dog, and his favorite things. In the next 30 minutes Joe spoke his few words over and over, but we communicated quite well. I told him about my dad in the Navy during Korea. Joe was familiar with battleships and aircraft carriers, but didn’t much like submarines. We talked about basketball, movies, dogs, and how his two sisters were in the Army. Joe was also able to express through pictures on his tablet that he would like to learn sign language so he could better communicate. I made no comment to Joe, but I am going to make it my mission to see if we can make that happen.
We continued our journey across Indiana and rode into Ohio. Soon after, we picked up our Ohio escort. Amazing is an understatement. Since the chase truck had gotten separated in the heavy traffic and a car or two was separating us from the Tail Gunners, it was nothing less than a miracle that they blocked the freeway of all traffic, while at the same time filtering out all non-NVAR vehicles yet allowing the chase truck to join the escort. Just at the Sherriff’s contingent were about to leave, I got a picture of them and was able to express my appreciation for their talents.
Brookville, where do I begin. The parade through town? AWESOME for us and for the people waving flags as well as those who were surprised, coming outside to see what all the noise was about. The greeting from the AMVETS with the largest American flag I think I’ve ever seen, suspended from a hook & ladder firetruck. Just looking at the flag makes your heart full. This was followed by the National Anthem, played by the High School band, a 21-gun salute by the Honor Guard, and the playing of Taps. Several certificates of appreciation were given out from NVAR to those who made this event possible. But one certificate was a complete surprise to NVAR. The Gold Star Ride Foundation made a presentation to Wayne Worden for his support of the work they do for Gold Star families.
Following all the ceremonies, we became aware of a veteran standing across the street waiting for his son who was performing in the High School band. He said, “I’m not much for being the center of attention, I’ll probably just disappear when it’s over.” But Tony Cunningham ran after him and a small group of veterans were able to present him with a Freedom Medal.
Time for dinner, and the Brookville AMVETS outdid themselves. We were fed, entertained, and welcomed into the family of veterans in town. For those on the ride for the first time, it was “like a party” and may I say…it was a party! What fun we all had.
Finally, I had a chance today to spend time with one of our riders, Hunter Hanson. I’d like to share with all who read the daily reports some impressive statistics about this young man. Hunter, a.k.a BamBam, is 11-years-old, but this is his 5th NVAR trip to DC. His grandfather, Rick “Captain Hook” Davis, only comes every-other year. So…you got it, Hunter’s first trip to DC was when he was 3-years-old. His earlier trips were in a truck with both his grandparents. But, for the first time this year, Hunter is riding with his grandfather. Not only does Hunter think riding on the bike is “cool,” when I commented on his ride pin proudly displayed on his vest, he pulled out his NVAR challenge coin and his Ride of Pride challenge coin.
Jerry, I think we’re looking at the next generation of NVAR in Hunter!
Thank a veteran today,
Thank You – Libby Worden – Sitrep Admin
