“There’s always a lot of great people out here and it’s for a great cause,” said Marine veteran Jose Rojas, standing beneath a pop-up shelter near the starting line of this year’s Ride for the Red.
“We’ve done this ride a couple of times before,” said his ride partner and fellow Marine veteran Raul Portal. “It’s always amazing.” Glancing out from under the shelter, he quipped with a sly smile, “and the weather is great.”
As the rain poured down around them, the duo spoke of how they met while riding with the military bike club Project Hero. Their longest ride together was from the San Fernando Valley all the way up to Bishop. They both agreed that it was one of the hardest things they have ever done but were glad to complete it. So, on this day, they didn’t let a little rain dampen their spirits.
About his military service, Rojas relates that he was stationed in Okinawa on 9/11 and then was deployed “to the ocean.” He explains that his group set sail immediately after the attacks and stayed out at sea for six months straight, ready for any eventuality. Portal deployed to Iraq in 2003 with the 23rd Marines of the 2nd Battalion. He recalls that the wife of a colleague was having pregnancy complications and the notification from home came through Red Cross Service to Armed Forces (SAF). SAF was able to make arrangements for the Marine to get home to support his wife until the baby was born. Both are grateful for the assistance SAF provides members of the military and veterans alike.
Earl Maypoing swears that the ‘Old Kranks’ really aren’t old cranks, just a friendly group of age 50+ folks from the community who love to ride their bicycles and socialize. Maypoing is the president emeritus of the bike club and, at 87 years old, the oldest participant in the Ride for the Red. “It makes us feel good to do good,” he said of the club’s annual participation in the Red Cross event. “Helping the Red Cross help veterans is why we do the ride and give blood.”
Red Cross volunteer Claudia Steele-Major also volunteers with the Military Animal Project (MAP), whose motto is “Healing Vets, Saving Shelter Pets.” Steele-Major brought along a pack of friends to the Ride for the Red event – both two-legged and four-legged. These friendly canines are all trained by MAP as therapy dogs. The group also rescues dogs from shelters and trains them as service animals. The dogs are then individually matched to veterans that need assistance with psychological and physical disabilities.
Steele-Major started with the Red Cross back in 2017, volunteering to assist as the Thomas Fire devastated her community. She is currently a member of the Mass Care and Disaster Action teams.
Matt Weinburke is one of Ride for the Red top fundraisers, surpassing his goal again this year. “I share my ride photos with my friends and family,” he said, “and they are always happy to donate. It’s such a good cause.”
Weinburke served his country for a total of 33 years. He was a Navy medic for 11 years, served in the Army as an active reserve for 12 more, and then topped it off with another 11 years with the Public Health Service. He helped train Army medical brigades following 9/11 and responded with the Health Service to Liberia for the 2014 outbreak of Ebola. During a ship deployment on the aircraft carrier USS Charles Vincent in 1995, Weinburke says that he was notified that his father had passed away. The notification came through SAF and he has been grateful to the Red Cross ever since. Today, he is a Red Cross volunteer, serving as an SAF instructor in Basic International Humanitarian Law.
Story by Dave Wagner, Photos by Sivani Babu and Tracy Sebastian
Why We Ride
Ride for the Red was created by passionate, local volunteers eager to share the story and history of the Red Cross Service to the Armed Forces.
The Red Cross helps members of the military, veterans, and their families prepare for, cope with, and respond to, the challenges of military service. Since 9/11, the Red Cross has served more than 1 million military families. The Red Cross is the only military service organization that supports military families from the day they enlist through their time as a veteran.
The Red Cross provides critical emergency communications for military families, deployment services, veterans programs, financial assistance, and referral information through a network of key community partners.
Red Cross Central California Blog 