thedrifter
07-09-07, 06:51 AM
Revved up for a cause
Bikers gather in Middletown to raise funds for Marine
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/9/07
BY TERRY GAUTHIER MUESSIG
STAFF WRITER
The N.J. Leathernecks roared into Middletown on their motorcycles Sunday for a good cause.
The third annual N.J. Leatherneck Combat Wounded Poker Run was held at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2179 in Port Monmouth to honor U.S. Marine Cpl. Joshua Maloney of Pittsburgh.
Maloney, 23, has been in the Marine Corps for five years. After returning from two tours in Iraq uninjured, Maloney lost his right hand while instructing a convoy operations class at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va., in January.
Woodbridge residents Sue McCartin-MacIntyre and her husband, Jerry MacIntyre, met Maloney on a train in February after the two men, both wearing baseball caps with the Marines logo, started talking.
"I believe in fate," McCartin-MacIntyre said. "We met Joshua by sheer coincidence while vacationing in Washington, D.C."
McCartin-MacIntyre is an 11th- and 12th-grade U.S. history teacher at Colonia High School in Woodbridge. When the couple returned home, she made a few telephone calls to find out where she could have her students write to Maloney. After he received the letters, cards and pictures, he called her, asking her if he could visit her class to thank them for their words of encouragement.
Maloney also met with Jerry MacIntyre's motorcycle friends. From that point on, the motorcycle group decided to raise money to help Maloney with his future plans.
Although he is not sure what school he will attend, Maloney said he hopes to go to college and become a football coach.
The fundraiser was held in the parking lot of the VFW. The event included an all-you-can-eat pig roast for $15, 50/50 raffles, entertainment and vendors selling T-shirts.
The N.J. Leathernecks is a nationwide club, and the Gung-Ho chapter has been in New Jersey for five years, said Paul Hadinger of Middletown. The motorcyclists pay $25 to be in the run.
Last year, the group honored Jeremy Trakimowicz of Manchester. Trakimowicz, 28, was severely wounded when a roadside bomb detonated in Fallujah, Iraq, on June 24, 2005.
The president of the club, Tony DeSantis of Middletown, said the club donated 95 cents of each $1 they raise to its recipients. Each year, the recipient gets about $10,000, he said.
As Maloney walked the grounds, he shook his head at times.
"This is amazing," he said. "I am thankful to these men and women."
Ellie
Bikers gather in Middletown to raise funds for Marine
Posted by the Asbury Park Press on 07/9/07
BY TERRY GAUTHIER MUESSIG
STAFF WRITER
The N.J. Leathernecks roared into Middletown on their motorcycles Sunday for a good cause.
The third annual N.J. Leatherneck Combat Wounded Poker Run was held at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2179 in Port Monmouth to honor U.S. Marine Cpl. Joshua Maloney of Pittsburgh.
Maloney, 23, has been in the Marine Corps for five years. After returning from two tours in Iraq uninjured, Maloney lost his right hand while instructing a convoy operations class at the Marine Corps base in Quantico, Va., in January.
Woodbridge residents Sue McCartin-MacIntyre and her husband, Jerry MacIntyre, met Maloney on a train in February after the two men, both wearing baseball caps with the Marines logo, started talking.
"I believe in fate," McCartin-MacIntyre said. "We met Joshua by sheer coincidence while vacationing in Washington, D.C."
McCartin-MacIntyre is an 11th- and 12th-grade U.S. history teacher at Colonia High School in Woodbridge. When the couple returned home, she made a few telephone calls to find out where she could have her students write to Maloney. After he received the letters, cards and pictures, he called her, asking her if he could visit her class to thank them for their words of encouragement.
Maloney also met with Jerry MacIntyre's motorcycle friends. From that point on, the motorcycle group decided to raise money to help Maloney with his future plans.
Although he is not sure what school he will attend, Maloney said he hopes to go to college and become a football coach.
The fundraiser was held in the parking lot of the VFW. The event included an all-you-can-eat pig roast for $15, 50/50 raffles, entertainment and vendors selling T-shirts.
The N.J. Leathernecks is a nationwide club, and the Gung-Ho chapter has been in New Jersey for five years, said Paul Hadinger of Middletown. The motorcyclists pay $25 to be in the run.
Last year, the group honored Jeremy Trakimowicz of Manchester. Trakimowicz, 28, was severely wounded when a roadside bomb detonated in Fallujah, Iraq, on June 24, 2005.
The president of the club, Tony DeSantis of Middletown, said the club donated 95 cents of each $1 they raise to its recipients. Each year, the recipient gets about $10,000, he said.
As Maloney walked the grounds, he shook his head at times.
"This is amazing," he said. "I am thankful to these men and women."
Ellie