353 – Ron Villareale – The Original Ghost Rider

April 23rd, I was at the Middleborough VFW filming with Richard Fitts Jr. and Arthur O’Callaghan for, “A Letter to M.I.A.s”. Setting up to film I was checking my gimbal when Richard Fitts Jr. asked me to meet this woman at a table. What was interesting was she had brought a lot of framed photos and documents to the filming.
She introduced herself and proceeded to tell me the story about her father, U.S. Navy Veteran Raymond Villareale. Raymond or Ray served during the Vietnam War. After the Vietnam War Ray was compelled to do something to bring attention to the fact that Americans had been left and forgotten as P.O.W.s and M.I.A.s.
Ray decided to ride his horse from across New England to Washington D.C. on his horse, American Thunder. The news clip heading says, “Ghost Riders for Forgotten of Vietnam. He didn’t want them to be forgotten. “No Man Left Behind”, meant something to him as he talked to those who came back from Vietnam.
After riding to Washington D.C., Ray decided more action was needed to keep the issue of his lost and missing brothers alive in people’s minds. He set out from New England and this time rode to California. Along the way, Ray met with politicians and other Veterans who all pitched in to help with the cause.
Watching Dawn show me Ray’s Paul Revere get-up, newspapers signed proclamations and letters, it became clear that a daughter’s love for her father has carried over into everything she does. Dawn cares about our active-duty service members, Veterans, and fellow Americans. Children watch what their parents do and we as parents set the example. We can all learn from what Ray did for us. Many of us are still looking for the 86,000 ghosts who have not been found.

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Thank you for sharing with us Dawn.