Vets motorcycle group has fun while helping community

Bikes, beards and brotherhood
Vets motorcycle group has fun while helping community


By Lauri Harvey Keagle

Anyone dropping by the Lowell Veterans of Foreign Wars post on a Saturday night might think they accidentally stepped into a biker bar.

The parking spaces closest to the door are filled with motorcycles flying American and Prisoner of War flags. Inside, long-haired, leather-clad, tattooed and bearded bikers with names like Moose, Dracula and Snowman are bellied up to the bar in the dark room, beers in hand, under a cloud of smoke.

Some tease each other about not riding their bikes there on a brisk winter night.

"You wimp," one says to another. "What, did your mommy drop you off?"

But no bar brawls break out among the group. Beneath the tough veil are local military vets and their supporters, all members of the American Veterans Motorcycle Riders Association, a nonprofit organization dedicated to assisting veterans and others in the community in need. The group raises about $3,000 annually for various organizations.

"Nobody does enough," said Roselawn resident Larry Midkiff, an Army veteran who serves as commander of the group. "The government doesn't do enough. We need to help fill that void."
read more here
Bikes beards and brotherhood