Ride’s mission: a wreath on every veteran’s grave

Roggie’s Ride For Wreaths’ mission is to place a wreath on every veteran’s grave at Christmas time.

“This is our pledge to those who have fallen and those who served to protect our freedom,” said Roger Elliott, who has been involved with four rides. “Our Nevada Veterans Coalition, of whom I’m a member, start our campaign after our day of independence (July 4), and now is the push to get enough donations to place a wreath on every serviceman’s grave at the Northern Nevada Veterans Memorial Cemetery.

Wreaths Across America occurs on the third Saturday of December.

Elliott donates each year’s ride to a fallen veteran. This year, he dedicated it to Army Spec. Jason Disney of Fallon, who was killed in Afghanistan on Feb. 13, 2002. A 1999 Churchill County High School graduate, Disney died in a welding accident as battalion soldiers ensured improvements were made at Bagram Air Field before more soldiers arrived at the base. He was a wheeled vehicle repairer and welder with the 7th Transportation Battalion’s 58th Maintenance Company (GS)/530th Supply and Service Battalion at Fort Bragg, N.C.

The main street at BAF has also been named after Disney.

As an Army soldier, the Fallon grad deployed to Afghanistan as part of Operation Enduring Freedom two months after terrorists struck the United States on Sept. 11, 2001, by ramming two passenger jets into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, another jet into the Pentagon and a fourth into a field in western Pennsylvania.

If enough donations come in, Elliott said there will be enough money to place wreaths on the veterans’ graves in Churchill County.

“Last year I completed the project with the help of the Coalition,” he said. “ We covered every veteran’s and first responder’s grave with a wreath. I was very proud of this since Fallon has been my home almost my entire 71 years on this planet.”

Elliott started his campaign for donations a week after July 4 and will be at the 911 Run in Reno in September as well as the Fallon Cantaloupe Festival in late August.

The recent ride headed to Twin Lakes, Calif. He said the ride always has a support vehicle for the bikes and to haul the coolers.

“I want everyone to know that as we celebrate our freedoms on the Fourth of July, it’s not over,” he said. “Let’s be thankful to our vets who made it possible for us to enjoy this beautiful country.”