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Community Corner

Bikers Escort War Vets in Purple Heart Tour through Tri-Valley

Motorcyclists from the Warriors' Watch Riders rolled down Main Street in Pleasanton and downtown Livermore to honor four rangers and a New York City fireman.

While the 4th of July was more than a month ago, Tri-Valley locals flocked downtown on Thursday to wave at passing war veterans in all their red, white, and blue.

A fleet of approximately 75 motorcyclists from the Warriors’ Watch Riders program escorted four members from the 3rd Ranger Battalion, 75th Regiment and a September 11th New York City fireman from Bernal Avenue in Pleasanton up to the Rao Ranch in Livermore.

The Warriors’ Watch Riders are a troop support group that assembles nationwide and gives motorcycle and vehicle escorts to war veterans and military units.

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“To hear their stories is unbelievable and to meet these heroes is
priceless,” said Spike Schau, California WWR coordinator and road captain for the tour.

The Third Annual Purple Heart Tour, which these riders accompanied, was founded by retired Lieutenant Colonel Dan Hammack to give wounded combat veterans an outdoor experience. This year’s veterans will spend the weekend blacktail deer hunting in the hills of Livermore.

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Not all the Warriors’ Watch Riders are war veterans, but many are friends and family of active soldiers from all branches of the military.

Randy Vander Molen has a son who is serving in the Army. As a biker, he has also escorted with the Patriot Guard Riders, most renowned for attending the funerals of U.S. armed forces members and protecting families from the Westboro Baptist Church protesters.

This year's riders were accompanied by a Huey helicopter, which circled around the escort route and landed at the ranch for the Purple Heart ceremony. The ceremony featured speakers from the California Deer Association and included a representative for Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan.

The ride up to Rao Ranch wound its way through downtown Pleasanton and downtown Livermore, peppered with supporters who honked horns, waved American flags, and cheered against the roar of Harleys and cruisers.

The service members escorted are listed below (with extended bios found here):

Ssg. Matthew Jackson

Ssg. Arnold Fletcher

Sfc. Tyson Crosby

Spc. Matt Tennill

FDNY Firefighter Paul Johnsen

Special thanks to Randy Vander Molen for escorting the journalist on the back of his Harley for filming.

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