Riders (from left) Dewayne Howard of Springfield, Missouri, Terry Sharp of Fenton, Missouri, along with Ann and John Stamb of Stafford, Virginia get to work organizing donated winter clothing during the opening moments of a Run For The Wall coat and winter clothing giveaway at Rainelle Elementary School Saturday afternoon.
RAINELLE , W.Va. – The thermometer read 37 degrees, but inside this town’s elementary school compassion warmed a rainy, cold Saturday morning.
Scores of children and their parents or grandparents sat on wooden bleachers, excitedly eyeing about 40 men and women donning leather vests and headbands, who placed new winter coats, colorful caps and warm gloves on tables.
The men and women were members of the motorcycle group known as Run for the Wall, an organization dedicated to raising awareness of POW and MIA issues. For the past 28 springs the group has stopped by Rainelle Elementary School, but this academic year the motorcyclists will visit twice.
But, he said, they wanted to do something for the kids. After calls to officials in the small Greenbrier County town, the group decided a coat drive was appropriate.
“We knew we had to do something special for the kids. Some lost everything they had,” Ward said. “We always want to come to Rainelle. And there is no better reason than this.”
Scores of students walked out of the school’s gym sporting a new coat and fancy hats and gloves, knitted by a group from Missouri just for Rainelle Elementary Schoolers. Students also received a pillow and pillow case made for them by the Navajo Nation from New Mexico.
Grandparent Joyce Gibson sat on the bleachers with a look of relief. She explained the free winter wear was a blessing during these tough economic times. “Everything has required extra effort since the flooding,” she said.
The free coat, gloves and hat for her 5-year-old grandson, Charlie Fannin, a kindergartner at the school, is appreciated by both grandmother and grandchild, she said.
“It’s just helps so much. It’s so important for kids to stay warm and comfortable in the winter, and for me its saves money and hardships,” she said.
But Run for the Wall didn’t just stop at donating to the students of Rainelle Elementary, a Title I school.
In a special presentation, Ward handed a check to Rainelle’s Veterans of Foreign Wars, a VFW whose building was destroyed in the flooding.
Kelly Goddard, the post’s leader, showed shock on her face when Ward handed him a $10,000 check to assist in rebuilding the lodge. After the initial shock went away, Goddard said the donation was a “Godsend.”
“Words cannot describe how this will help,” he quickly added.
Goddard said the donation brings their fundraising efforts to $38,000 of the $50,000 they need to rebuild on a new site.
He said fundraising for the 372-member lodge has been slow and mainly comes from individuals donating small sums. Governmental and nonprofit agencies have denied their request. Run for the Wall’s donation is the largest single contribution Rainelle’s VFW has received.
Rainelle Elementary Principal Kim Tincher said she is not surprised by the goodwill of Run for the Wall. She said the group donates money and much-needed items to the school.
In the past, Run for the Wall has donated playground equipment, funded field trips, sponsored the Positive Reward program and so much more, she said. So, it wasn’t a surprise when one of the first calls Tincher received during the flooding was from Run for the Wall.
“They called me immediately to ask what they can do, what do I need for the students,” she said.
The relationship between Run for the Wall, a national organization, and Rainelle Elementary School, which currently has 205 students enrolled, was started by accident and admiration.
As Nathan Ward, of Toledo, Ohio, explained, nearly three decades ago, the group was riding from Los Angeles to Washington, D.C. When the group rode on toll roads, the last rider would pay for all the bikes. However, when the group arrived at the West Virginia toll road, the Parkways Authority refused to allow that. So, the group decided to forgo the interstate, taking the backroads instead.
When they arrived in Greenbrier County, they were met by local authorities. The sheriff at the time asked why a group of bikers was riding though the county. When it was explained the bikers were riding to raise awareness of the MIA/POW issue, the sheriff called the local elementary school to line the students up and salute while the bikers rode past, Nathan Ward said.
“To this day that tradition continues,” every spring, he said.