The Herald, Sharon, Pa.

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June 11, 2006

Biker run honors fallen soldiers

By Courtney Anderson

HERMITAGE — The roar of motorcycle engines overpowered the sound of 444 flags snapping in the wind Saturday afternoon at Hillcrest Memorial Park.

The tears were silent as a Marine veteran read the names of men and women who’ve died in Iraq and Afghanistan while the Venango County Veteran Honor Guard stood at attention in front of the War on Terror Memorial at the Hermitage cemetery.

Several hundred bikers, family and community members turned out to honor the soldiers and the families dealing with their loss. Most in the crowd wore leathers and bandanas or shirts sporting photos and names of loved ones who have died.

The ceremony — which included readings of poems, a bugler playing “Taps” and a bagpipe rendition of “Amazing Grace” — and memorial motorcycle ride was organized by the Western Pennsylvania Families of Fallen Heroes Foundation. A 21-gun salute with 105 Howitzer canons also honored the dead.

Mercer County soldiers Sgt. Michael A. Marzano, Spc. Douglas E. Kashmer, Sgt. Shawn A. Graham, Lt. Col. Michael E. McLaughlin and Staff Sgt. David M. Veverka were among those who gave the ultimate sacrifice.

The ride began in Franklin, stopping and picking up more bikers in Butler and Hermitage and ultimately ending with a picnic in Erie. As the group traveled north, the foundation’s Bill Tomko said he ultimately expected 3,000 to 5,000 people.

The foundation was started by Tomko of Harrisville, an Army veteran who served in Vietnam, after his nephew Sgt. Nicholas Tomko of the U.S. Army Reserves was killed in Baghdad in 2003.

Tomko said the goal of the foundation is “just to be there” for soldiers families both emotionally and financially from the moment “they first get that knock on the door.”

He said that when he first started contacting families of fallen soldiers they thanked him and said, “We didn’t think anybody cared.”

“That’s what this ride’s about,” Tomko said Saturday. “You showing families that you do care.”

Tomko, who doesn’t ride, said he turned to the motorcycle community to help show support and raise funds — the foundation collected $10 per vehicle in the ride — because he knew they’d come together. Also, a lot of bikers are veterans themselves, he said.

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