Veterans were honored over the weekend as Performance Automotive (Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram) held a fundraising event supporting outreach programs raising money for those who serve or have served the country.
Well over 100 people showed up at the Performance on Warsaw Road on Saturday. Several outreach programs came out to the event on a mission to raise funds to help veterans in need. Off-Road Outreach founder Stacey Buckner hosted the event alongside veteran and Forging Forward founder, Bobby Henline.
“We are connected forever now,” the Forging Forward founder commented on the partnership with Buckner. The Off-Road Outreach founder’s program runs through the Bobby Henline Foundation.
The Off-Road Outreach program provides hot meals and hot showers for displaced veterans. Buckner sets up her Jeep Wrangler at specific locations and drapes a tarp around the side with a shower attachment. The jeep can provide hot water for veterans to take a shower and the tarp is set up for their privacy. The jeep also features a kitchen where Buckner can make hot meals for those who show up for a shower.
The VA worker also partners with Henline in his foundation dedicated to raising suicide awareness among veterans and first responders. The veteran’s Forging Forward program works toward providing an outlet for those suffering from depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. His program targets fellow veterans active duty military members and first responders; the ultimate goal is to eliminate suicide among these groups.
The Forging Forward program sold T-shirts with a message important to Henline. The shirts read “What is Strong with You?” in an attempt to get people to stop asking “What’s wrong with me?”
The group was also joined by Operation Fly Our Flag founder, Nathan Sheppard. Sheppard wanted to find a way to thank veterans for their service, which he did by presenting them with a folded flag. During the event at Performance, Henline and Buckner handed out remembrance tags to veterans working at the dealership. The tags had the names of veterans or first responders who took their life. Those who received these tags were asked to take an oath to continue the fight in memory of those who lost their lives.
“On the long chain, which is going to be closer to your heart, is the veterans’ name,” Henline explained. “It’s about remembering our strength.”
The shorter chain has a tag that says Forging Forward and it asks the question ‘What’s Strong with You.’ A total of 20 tags and flags were handed out during the event.
The oath is as follows: “I will wear this tag as a reminder of my strength. I will wear it with honor. I will grow from what is strong with me. I will continue to improve my fighting position. I will wear it out of respect to live my life to the fullest for those we lost.”
Emotions ran high as the veterans took these tags and the folded flags presented by members of Operation Fly Our Flag.
“We want to use these tags as strength,” Henline commented.
Henline reaches out to everyone who lives a life of service and tries to help others get through hard times by providing ways for them to escape and ways for them to learn how to get through their struggles.
The American Legion Post 109, based out of Benson, provided their support at the event. The riders drove from Benson to Fayetteville to partake in the Jeep convoy that made its way to Clinton. The convoy consisted of 62 Jeeps, according to Buckner. Each jeep owner provided a $20 donation to take part in the ride, known as the Homeless Veterans and Suicide Awareness Ride.
“Any time there’s a fundraiser for veterans, we’re there,” Cathy Lutz, American Legion Post 109 member explained.
Kenny Williams, commander of the American Legion Post 22 based in Clinton, and his wife Carolyn wanted to help with the event as soon as they heard word of it. The two were able to contact the Off-Road Outreach director and offer to assist in setting a sheriff’s deputy escort for the convoy. They also got the word out to the post members so they could come to show support. Kenny was part of the crew who hoisted the flag during the start of the event.
Mission BBQ provided free meals to the first 100 people to show up in Clinton; but, after they got to the 100th person, they decided to continue the donation and went out to get more food to serve to everyone who showed up.
All of the proceeds during the event went to Forging Forward and the Off-Road Outreach program. Raffle tickets were sold during the first few hours and winners were pretty happy with their prizes. One woman, Rebecca Knapton, bought dozens of raffle tickets to help with the cause and ended up winning 11 prizes, some of which she gave out to other crowd members.
Performance General Manager Terry Lee was thrilled with the opportunity to partner up with Henline and Buckner for the event. Lee expressed the possibility of continuing the partnership in the future and perhaps holding the event annually.
“We believe what Stacey does is important. We just love helping people. We believe in serving people,” said Lee, who assists at a food bank in Salemburg. “We helped her [Buckner] feed the homeless just last week.”
Lee and Performance Automotive comptroller, Ingrid Burgess, were given a certificate of appreciation from the outreach leaders. Lee and Burgess believe wholeheartedly that it is important to help people and to give back. They were very impressed with the work of these outreach programs. Lee also explained that although only 62 Jeeps showed for the event, 109 preregistered.
“It’s amazing how much a Jeep can bring people together,” Lee stated.
