The Purple Heart Truck Run is coming to The Villages.
The Military Order of the Purple Heart Chapter 795 will host a ceremony Tuesday, July 3, welcoming the special vehicle, which is traveling on a 7,800-mile odyssey across America.
The 2018 Purple Heart Truck Run will be in The Villages on Tuesday, July 3, during a 10 a.m. ceremony at the Eisenhower Recreation Center. The truck is traveling on a 7,800-mile odyssey across America that will end July 30 in Spokane, Wash., at the Military Order of the Purple Heart National Convention.
The focus of the 2018 Purple Heart Truck Run is “Mobility is Freedom.” Sponsored jointly by the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Wounded Warriors Family Support Foundation, the mobility-equipped 2018 Ford F-150 truck is adapted to accommodate combat-wounded veterans who are paralyzed or have lost legs and/or arms. The organization’s belief is that given the right vehicle for mobility, a combat-wounded veteran will have the freedom to live a productive and quality life with his or her family.
The ceremony, which will be held at Eisenhower Recreation Center, begins at 10 a.m. Those attending will learn more about the truck’s route and the purpose of the journey. And they’ll enjoy a demonstration of the truck’s capabilities, an introduction of the drivers and the opportunity to sign the vehicle.
Driven exclusively by amputee veterans, the Purple Heart Truck Run is a coast-to-coast venture that’s rallying communities across America to thank our nation’s military veterans and support this mission. The event started June 18 in Springfield, Va., and will traverse the nation to California and end in Spokane, Wash., on July 30 at the Military Order of the Purple Heart National Convention.
On its way across America, the truck, which is being provided by the Wounded Warriors Family Support Foundation, will stop at Military Order of the Purple Heart chapters to demonstrate the its capabilities and to distribute special parking signs that mark spaces to be used exclusively for Purple Heart recipients.
At the conclusion of the Purple Heart Truck Run, the keys to the vehicle will be presented to retired Army Sgt. Justin Burdette, a Purple Heart recipient from Palm Bay who was chosen from a nation-wide search of eligible and deserving nominees.
On June 9, 2013, Burdette was three months into his third deployment to Afghanistan when his platoon received incoming mortar and rocket fire while on a dismounted patrol in Wardak Province. Burdette was hit with a 107mm rocket, with the blast causing him to lose both legs below the knees. For his injuries, he was awarded the Purple Heart medal.
The Military Order of the Purple Heart was formed in 1932 for the protection and mutual interest of all combat wounded veterans and active duty men and women who have received the decoration. Statistics show that there are an estimated 1.8 million Purple Heart recipients that were either killed in action or wounded in combat or by an act of international terrorism.
The mission of Wounded Warriors Family Support is to provide support to the families of those who have been wounded, injured or killed during combat operations. Programs provided by the organization include: A Family Retreat to provide vacation retreats, free of charge; a Caregiver Respite Program provides respite and supplemental services nationwide to the caregivers and families of wounded war veterans; and the “Mobility is Freedom” program provides grants to qualified combat-wounded veterans for the purchase of a Ford vehicle, specially adapted to suit veterans who are paralyzed or have lost legs or arms.