ON THE ROAD (KELO AM) A specially modified Purple Heart Ford pickup will role into Sioux Falls Tuesday for a brief stop from a road trip across the country and back again to give disabled veterans hope.
The volunteer drivers are Purple Heart recipients. 68-year-old Jim Logsdon lost both his legs in Vietnam, but driving the special purple-colored truck is a snap.
"There are so many different things out there, there is no excuse for anybody in a wheel chair to be staying at home, watching TV, or staying in bed," Logsdon tells KELO.COM News from somewhere on the road in Minnesota.
Jim's driving partner from Madison, Wisconsin to Sioux Falls is 67-year-old Mark Williamson from Garretson, South Dakota. Williamson was also severely wounded in Vietnam, although he still has all his body parts. The war gives the two of them something to talk about on the road.
"Its easy for the two guys who were there, the 'been there, done that' kind of thing, to talk. Otherwise, talking to someone who hasn't been there, they don't understand what you're talking about." says Williamson.
The theme of the 2017 Purple Heart Truck Run is 'Mobility is Freedom'. Williamson, Logsdon, and the other Purple Heart recipients who will be driving the special Ford F-150, in separate stretches over thousands of miles, want to prove that combat injuries and disabilities don't have to get in the way of living a full life.
Jim and Mark should get into Sioux Falls to the DAV headquarters sometime late Tuesday afternoon, then a good nights sleep to be fresh and perky for another ceremony at Sioux Falls Ford Wednesday at 10 a.m. Then the Purple Heart truck takes off for Rapid City, and points west.
The 2017 Purple Heart Truck Run - an 8,500-mile-long adventure - is sponsored by the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Wounded Warriors Family Support.