Run For The Wall 35th Anniversary pre-kick off at Mt. Soledad
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Super hero wings return to Mt. Soledad National Veterans Memorial to support the Run For The Wall 35th Anniversary and the 50th Anniversary of the End of the Vietnam War.
RFTW is an annual motorcycle ride from California to Washington D.C. Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall to honor veterans and call for an accounting of Prisoners of War (POW) and Missing In Action (MIA).
The inaugural RFTW took place in San Diego, Calif., May 1989, led by U.S. Marine Corps veteran, James “Gunny” Gregory to bring awareness of the POW/MIA dilemma. Today, the RFTW is the largest and longest organized motorcycle ride of its kind in the world.
The Honor Wings will be displayed at Mt. Soledad as they did for Honor Ride 2021- The impressive super hero steel wings are comprised of dog tag "feathers" that represent the MIA from the Vietnam War (1573 at present). Each dog tag is embossed with the name of the MIA veteran, branch of service, location last seen and date of disappearance-similar to the POW/MIA memorial bracelets concerned citizens wore during the Vietnam War in hopes of their return.
The POW/MIA Wings is an art piece based on the wings that belong to the super heroine character LT Williams in the story
"Purple Foxes United." The historical fiction story was inspired by the Son Tay raid, the most daring mission executed to save Prisoners of War. Many of the characters are based on legends of carrier aviation and Honor Flight San Diego alumni veterans.
Local WWII child Prisoner of War, Tom Crosby (91) will convey his support and share his POW experience, then ride in a motorcycle escort to Ontario, Calif. to meet the main group of riders for the official RFTW cross-country kick-off.
Tom and his family of five were held captive for 37 months shortly after the Japanese entered Manilla. “I’m so honored to participate in this event in support of the Run For The Wall as it is a tremendous undertaking the riders commit to each year to ensure the Prisoners of War and Missing In Action are never forgotten. May God be with them,” stated Tom Crosby.
