The DoD Yellow Ribbon Reintegration Program (YRRP) and the United States Air Force Reserves have asked the Patriot Guard Riders to Honor the Airmen and Airwomen who are faithfully serving their country and are getting ready to deploy on yet another Combat Tour. The YRRP is a national veteran reintegration program to provide National Guard and Reserve Component members and their families a managed PTSD program. The Reserves are serving longer and more frequent Combat Tours then our Active Duty Forces and have since the beginning of the war. Each tour averages 9 months to a year. The Yellow Ribbon Committee has been tasked to provide for the Departing and Returning Heroes classes and seminars that help them and their families cope with the extended tours and frequent reassignments. The immense effects of PTSD on these Heroes is reflected in the funding. The Department of Defense recognizes their extraordinary sacrifices and provides them Joint Chief of Staff (JCS) Unlimited funding. The USAFR have more combat related suicides and divorces than any other group in the military.
In the last 2 years, the PGR attended this same event in San Diego, Sacramento, Costa Mesa and Garden Grove. We were provided with a room of refreshments and free parking. The Riders met with Active Duty, Veterans, Forward Area Controllers, Combat Controllers, ParaRescuemen, SERE Instructors, and of course the Pilots and Aircrewmen and women and support personnel. At those meetings we have "saluted" 3000 Returning and Redeploying Reserve Heroes and over 4,000 family members.
We have been invited to once again participate. We will be staging at a separate location then riding to the location where free parking is provided, cages are welcomed but may have to find their own parking. Additionally, we will then form in an informal column of twos then walk into the Event Location and when directed we will enter the Meeting Room where our Heroes and Family are just finishing up. They may have already watched a video about us. We will line up across the front of the stage and the R/C will go on the stage to give a short speech about the PGR. After that the R/C will ask for the Senior Ranking individual that is deploying to come to the podium and then present him / her with a PGR Flag, signed by the riders on multiple missions to take with them and display at the Forward Operating Base. At the end of that he will call the PGR to Attention and we will give our Heroes a Salute. We will then exit and form a flag line just outside the doors and shake hands with the participants as they exit.
NOTE: Do not travel directly to the Event Location; there will be a parking fee. NOTE: This mission posting is to facilitate your voluntary participation in honoring these USAFR Heroes. For those interested, and all are welcome, we will be staging in Costa Mesa. Please see the time table below if you would like to participate.
Time Table for Sunday, 25 Jan 15: 0900 - Stage at Chevron Extra-Mile-Costa-Mesa, 3048 Bristol St, Costa Mesa, CA 92626 URL:
https://goo.gl/maps/myM3X 0930 - Mission Briefing.
1000 - KSU to event location.
R/C Chuck "Machine" Johnson USAF Ret SERE MSgt
US Army SEA 68-70
SoCalPGR - Ride Captain
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https://www.patriotguard.org/showthread.php?399014
