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The history of the Patriot Guard originated on 24 July 2005
when American Legion Rider Terry Houck's wife, Carol, learned that a group
of protesters disrupted a Newkirk, Oklahoma soldier's funeral. Together,
they created a plan for riding to the funerals and showing sincere respect
to our fallen heroes, their families, and their communities. Terry
discussed the plan with other members of Kansas American Legion Riders
from Legion Post 136, Mulvane, Kansas. The group agreed to take action to
preserve our Fallen Hero's memory and honor, and provide support to their
families who were being harassed by the Fred Phelps Westboro Baptist
Church protesters.
At the 7 August 2005 meeting, ALR 136 director Chuck "Pappy" Barshney
appointed committee members Terry "Darkhorse" Houck, Cregg "Bronco6"
Hansen, Steve "McDaddy" McDonald, Bill "Wild Bill" Logan. The committee
established a mission purpose, procedures, and guidelines to honor the
memory of our Fallen Soldiers and support the families who are subjected
to the WBC protests. Later additions to the committee include co-director
Dennis "Tatonka" Scuffham, Greg "Ebay" Hansen, Richard "Stretch" Strothman
and Doug "GreyEagle" Lehman.
When the ALR 136 committee heard that the WBC were going to protest at the
Funeral of Sgt John Doles in Chelsea, Oklahoma, a Mission Statement was
established. The Mission Statement included getting the Families
permission and contacting Law Enforcement and other Motorcycle Groups in
Kansas and Oklahoma, as well as other states. The committee agreed that
the ultimate goal was to get veterans and motorcycle organizations
involved in every state so that each state could handle the situation
internally and not rely on other states to do the job. Cregg Hansen used
his American Legion Rider Chapter contacts to spread the word about the
mission. Our established procedures have been adopted by all Patriot
Guard for use on the National level.
The 11 October 2005 Chelsea, Oklahoma mission was planned and executed
with military precision. After the successful Chelsea Mission, the Kansas
American Legion Riders wanted all motorcycle groups, organizations, and
individual supporters to be recognized. Therefore, on 18 October 2005 the
name of the "PATRIOT GUARD" was established. The "Patriot Guard" name was
proudly announced to more than one hundred riders present at the 27
October 2005 Tonganoxie Mission to Honor SPC Lucas Frantz. We designed
our Patriot Guard patches and began distributing them in late November
2005.
Since then, the Kansas Patriot Guard has planned and executed missions in
Kansas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska, and participated in missions planned by
other states. The Patriot Guard missions are successful because each and
every member contributes their time to stand guard.
"Alone We Can Do So Little, Together We Can Do So Much"
Former Patriot Guard Co-Captains and Ride Captains - Thank you for your dedication
Greg "Ebay" Hansen - died 22 Dec 2008 Rest in Peace, Brother
Deems "Doc" Peterson - died 18 April 2014 Rest in Peace, Brother
Chuck "Macgyver" Ford - died 31 July 2017 Rest in Peace, Brother
Cregg "Bronco 6" Hansen - died 12 Feb 2018 Rest in Peace, Brother
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