February 1, 2003 - Pocket Flag Project

At our February District 6 and State ALRA of WI meetings in Ripon, members participated in a project called "Pocket Flags". Brian Tym, owner of the Patriot Store in Green Bay is organizing this program. Miniature flags are formally folded and placed in a plastic bag with a small memo stating that a piece of America is with you as you defend our freedoms. The goal is to have these flags sent to all active duty service men and women throughout the world.

March 22, 2003 - Support Our Troops Rally

The ALRA of Wisconsin was invited to participate in a "Support Our Troops Rally" in Oshkosh on Saturday, March 22, 2003. ALRA of WI provided a service flag display for the event. Below are a few photos of the event.

May 10, 2003 - New Officers for District 11

On Saturday, May 10, 2003, some of our state ALRA of WI officers ventured north to Eagle River to forrmally install the new ALRA of Wisconsin officers for District 11. We want to congratulate the following gentlemen for taking the following positions:

Dick Klug - ALRA of WI District 11 President

Doug Breit - ALRA of WI District 11 Vice President

Dick Moss - ALRA of WI District 11 Secretary

Lanny Ross - ALRA of WI District 11 Treasurer

Below are a couple photos. You can see more information under "District Events" by clicking District 11.

Dick Moss, Lanny Ross, Doug Breit and Dick Klug	Roy and Nancy Helms, Kevin Wiley & Jack Hill

June 13, 2003 - Electric Parade in Brillion

P.R. Passes the President's "Rocker"

Tthe picture below shows P.R. Meyer, the founding President of ALRA of Wisconsin, passing the President's "Rocker" to Roy Helms, the new State President of the ALRA of Wisconsin after the election results. Roy is from District 6 - Post 70 in Oshkosh. He is also currently the President of District 6 ALRA of WI. Congratulations to Roy!

P.R. is from District 9 - Post 38 in Appleton. Over the past three years, P.R. has been instrumental in getting the Legion Rider's organization off the ground in Wisconsin. We all wish to thank him for his time and talents during his tenure as past president. It was his vision that made the Legion Riders a reality in Wisconsin. Thanks P.R.!

P.R. still plans to stay active with the ALRA of WI, but in a different role. He will be working with selling our Legion Rider products. Look for them on this website in the future.

New Slate of State Officers

Milwaukee Post 400 hosted the spring quarterly meeting of the ALRA of Wisconsin, which was held on May 3, 2003. We want to sincerely thank them for their hospitality. We had a good showing of representatives from around the state. The weather was nice, although a bit cool, but still a great day for a ride! Part of the agenda of this meeting was the election of state officers. Below are the election results for the following officer positions.

President: Roy Helms - District 6 - Post 70 (Oshkosh)

Vice President: Jim Sperling - District 2 - Post 157 (Horicon)

Secretary: Jack Hill - District 6 - Post 33 (Neenah)

Treasurer: Stan Brill - District 9 - Post 41 (Kaukauna)

Sgt at Arms: Joe Dollevoet - District 9 - Post 258 (Little Chute)

Road Captain: Kevin Wiley - District 6 - Post 33 (Neenah)

Historian: Nancy Helms - District 6 - Post 70 (Oshkosh)

Chaplain: Bob Lane - District 2 - Post 47 (Portage)

Congratulations to them all!

May 16, 2003 - AVTT at the Milwaukee War Memorial Bldg

The ALRA of Wisconsin was invited by Rolling Thunder Chapter One of Wisconsin to participate in a Candlelight Remembrance Ceremony when the American Veteran's Traveling Tribute (Portable Vietnam Veteran's Memorial Wall) visited Milwaukee near the Milwaukee War Memorial Bldg. Below are a few pictures of the events.

May 17, 2003 - Armed Forces Memorial Run in Milwaukee

The ALRA of Wisconsin was invited to provide a motorcycle color guard for Milwaukee's annual Armed Forces Day Memorial Run. The run began at the HD Plant on Capitol Drive and ended at the War Memorial Building in Milwaukee. Below are a few photos of the event.

May 17, 2003 - ALRA Participates with Rolling Thunder in Ripon

The ALRA of Wisconsin was invited by Rolling Thunder, Chapter One, Wisconsin to participate in its Candlelight Remembrance Ceremony in Ripon. ALRA of WI provided the motorcycle color guard and service flag display along with escorting two local Gold Star Mothers. In addition, ALRA posted colors and performed a formal flag folding ceremony. Below are a few photos of the event.

May 18, 2003 - Annual King Veterans Home Open House Run

ALRA of WI provided a motorcycle color guard for Fox Valley H.O.G.'s annual King Veteran's Home Open House Run. Appleton Legion Post 38 provided a great breakfast for more than 100 participants. Dennis Moore, ALRA of WI member and Fox Valley H.O.G. Director poses below with a senior brother from the home. The rest of the group also has a chance to get a group shot with our fellow brother.

June 14, 2003 - Appleton Flag Day Parade

ALRA of WI participated in Appleton's Flag Day Parade this year. Our organization was given the distinct privilege and honor of leading the Pierce fire trucks and local volunteers who distributed more than 30,000 flags to the children along the parade route. Below is a picture of our group who participated in the parade. A special thanks to the members from Post 400 (Harley-Davidson Post - Milwaukee - Kurt, Curtiss and Leroy) who came to Appleton to ride in the parade.

June 14, 2003 - ALRA Fundraiser Run

ALRA of WI wishes to thank all those who participated in this year's successful fundraiser run. The proceeds from this run will go to Camp American Legion. This year, we are happy to say we raised over $1,600 for Camp American Legion.

A special note of thanks to Bob Lane, ALRA of WI member (Post 47 - Portage) and owner of the Full Throttle in Portage for sponsoring this fundraiser run. Another thank you for the hard work from the ladies of the Auxiliary from Portage Post 47 for putting on a great feed.

Another thank you to Bala's Harley Davidson in Wisconsin Dells for their support and their donations for the raffle prizes and the main raffle prize of the Harley Davidson quilt. Below are pictures of the run from Balas HD, a picture of Bob Lane at the Full Throttle and P.R., Bob Lane and Roy Helms.

June 18, 2003 - Miss Wisconsin Parade

The ALRA of Wisconsin provided a motorcycle color guard and service flag display for the Miss Wisconsin Pageant Parade in Oshkosh on Wednesday, June 18, 2003. Below are a few photos of the event.

Reedsville Firemen's Parade - June 29th

The ALRA of WI was invited to provide a motorcycle color guard for the Reedsville Firemen's Parade on Sunday, June 29th. Below is a photo of the group. In front, Kurtis Schaeuble, Jack Hill and Stan Brill. In the back are some of American Legion District 6 officere. They are Jim Romnek, Commander Gary Mader and Ken Nimmer. Our color guard isn't as "creative" as the Shriners from Green Bay. Below you see them each pulling a "wheelie". Hmm, wonder how much practice that would take?

Holiday Parades - July 4th & 5th

On July 4th, the ALRA was invited to participate in both the Oshkosh and the Omro Independence Day Parades. Also, on July 5th, the ALRA participated in Princeton's "Let Freedom Ring" Parade. Below are a few photos of the events.

Horicon Marsh Days Parade - Sunday, July 27th

Below is a photo of the group that participated in Horicon's Marsh Days Parade.

Riponfest Parade - Sunday, July 13th

The ALRA of WI participated in the Riponfest Parade on Sunday July 13th. Below are a few photos from the event.

Labor Day Parade in Menasha - September 1st

The ALRA of WI participated in the Neenah-Menasha Labor Day parade. Below are a couple photos of the event.

POW/MIA Silent March - Lake Geneva - Saturday, September 20, 2003

The American Legion Riders Association of Wisconsin went to Lake Geneva to American Legion Post 24 to participate in their Annual POW/MIA Silent March. Numerous veteran's organizations participated in the event. A remembrance ceremony followed the march and was held at the Riveria. The ceremony involved numerous speeches from an ex-POW, a Medal of Honor recipient and the Post Commander. The Empty Table Ceremony was performed and the Final Call of the 37 Wisconsin Vietnam Veterans still missing were read. State Vice Commander and American Legion Rider member, Fred Manske also participated in the ride. Below are a few photos of the event.

State Commander's Testimonial Dinner - November 8, 2003

Members of the ALRA of WI attended Wisconsin's Department Commander, David Gough's testimonial dinner in Platteville on Saturday, November 8th. As many of you know, Commander Gough is also a member of the ALRA of WI. A few of the members that attended take time for a photo opportunity with Commander Dave.

"Salute to Our Troops III Parade" - Sunday, September 7, 2003

The American Legion Riders Association of Wisconsin sponsored their third annual "Salute to Our Troops Parade" in Oshkosh.

This "vehicular" parade consisted of over 100 motorcycle enthusiasts, numerous military vehicle owners, veterans, several law enforcement, fire, and EMS personnel. All were present to honor all members of our armed forces. National Guard, Reserve and Active Duty troops also participated as our honored guests. Gary Wetzel, one of Wisconsin's Medal of Honor recipients, was our Grand Marshal. American Legion Dept of Wisconsin State Commander David Gough also participated in the parade. In addition, three of Wisconsin's Gold Star Mothers rode as motorcycle passengers in the parade. Thanks to all who participated in the parade.

We wish to sincerely thank Post 70, Oshkosh for allowing us to gather at the Post after the parade for food and refreshments. Thanks to all who participated and donated their time and money to make this event a success.

Again, this parade was to show support of our military personnel committed to protecting our liberties, most recently in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and a memorial tribute to honor our fallen service members. We also paid tribute to the rescuers, those injured, and those lost in the tragedy of Sept. 11, 2001.

Below are a few photos of the event.

ALRA of WI Participates in American Legion National Convention Parade - Sunday, August 24, 2003

Five members of the ALRA of WI drove down to St. Louis, MO to participate in the American Legion National Convention Parade on Sunday, August 24, 2003. Ten states were represented by the Legion Riders. A total of 51 motorcycles rode in a procession to kick off the parade. Below are a few photos of the event.

P.R. Reports on Rolling Hills Romp

P.R. Meyer and Jan Markheim attended this year's Rolling Hills Romp in St. Anthony, IN over the 4th of July holiday. The following is a brief report from P.R.

"The only Wisconsin members we saw were each other. There were members from eight other states this year. Last year there were ten states represented, but less members from each, 150 or so. This year there were a good 200 members.

A very well run event. My hats off to our brothers in Indiana. Lots of dry shaded camping, an AC shelter and restrooms, cold drinks, home cooking on a wood fire made for you, tattoos, bike games, escorted poker run, bike show, live music, hot water showers, and good times.

A meeting was called on Saturday for officers from each Chapter (District) from each state. Both Jan and myself went to represent ALRA WI. The meeting was run by Dawg (Indiana State President), and Bill ( founding member, original ALR ). Bill from Michigan is the " acting national president" as voted last year by the ten states that were there. There is no national ALR, but it was decided that we did need a contact to represent us as a group to the National Legion. This year, a panel was picked, as an advisory group for Legion family members to get in contact with in regards to the ALR. The panel that was voted in is, Dawg (Indiana), Bill (Michigan), Tramp (Texas), Bernie Dare (Texas). The panels first job will be to set up an ALR rep in each State. They asked for the state president, but that would be up to each department. We need to pick a rep and send the contact name to them. This group would then in turn act as a informational group to help the ALR grow in the same direction. Not making any rules per say, but to guide as a whole.

We were told the ALR are growing fast. Last year there were 37 chapters in 19 states. This year we are now 87 chapters in 32 states and Puerto Rico! Also some states want "B" members. This was voted down. If you wear the ALR patch you must be a member of the Legion family. You can have ALR supporter members or honorary ALR members, that don't own a motorcycle, but they must be a member of the Legion Family. They are also looking for a new chapter to hold the 3rd annual ALR National next year."

PR Meyer, Dist 9, Post 38 ALRA WI.

Below are a few photos from the Romp.

ALR Meeting	ALR POW Ceremony