Sojourn for freedom
Washington councilman escorts flag to D.C. in historic motorcycle ride
Washington City Councilman Joseph DeThomas fused his love of community service and motorcycles when he joined the National Flag Foundation’s Sojourn250 event earlier this month in celebration of the United States’ semiquincentennial anniversary.
The sojourn saw a 5-by-3-inch American flag visit all 50 states, overseas territories and 26 U.S. military cemeteries on foreign soil before returning for the capstone moment – a 250-mile motorcycle ride to escort the flag from Pittsburgh to Washington, D.C., on July 4.
“Sojourn250 brings together residents, families, veterans, workers, students, faith communities, visitors and civic partners in a shared tribute to service, sacrifice, hard work, creativity, ingenuity and the ideals represented by our region and the American flag,” National Flag Foundation Chairman Romel Nicholas said in a statement.
DeThomas heard about the opportunity to join the ride through his local American Legion Riders Post 175, a subsect of the larger American Legion veterans group.
He was joined by 249 other motorcycle riders from across the country to give the flag an honor guard to its final resting place at the Smithsonian Museum.
DeThomas said, “I was proud to be called up for this historic ride as a former member of our nation’s U.S. Army and a member of the Legion Riders Association. This flag represents the 250 years of freedom of our country.”
The flag, and DeThomas, left from downtown Pittsburgh at 6 a.m. July 4 alongside a Pennsylvania State Police escort with other police vehicles from Maryland, West Virginia and Virginia police departments to arrive at the U.S. Capitol Building around 10:30 a.m., where the flag was officially presented to Congress by the national commander of the Legion Riders.
DeThomas rode his prized 1997 Honda Shadow 1100, one of his collection of four motorcycles, for the duration of the journey to Washington and back for the “awesome” experience, plus a short ride on July 3 where he escorted the flag as the sole rider from the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies to Pittsburgh.
“It made me proud to be a part of something historical for my fellow veterans,” he said.