UPDATE Regarding EVENTS

With thousands of like-minded followers, Patriot Connections has been dedicated to providing our veteran, military, first responder and patriot community with a comprehensive resource of events in NJ, PA and the surrounding areas for the last 10 years - including resources for veterans and first responders. Whether it's information on upcoming 5K Runs/Walks, Sporting Events, Job Fairs, Town Hall Meetings, Motorcycle Runs, Ceremonies, Dinners, Dances, Honor Missions, Welcome Homes, Golf Outings, or Resources for our Veterans, Military and 1st Responders. 

November 2021 - Over the last couple of years (including COVID), many events were cancelled/postponed and most organizations have chosen to list their events on social media platforms such as Facebook. Due to decrease in organizations listing their events directly on the Patriot Connection website, we primarily just list events on the Patriot Connections Facebook Page. Feel free to visit our Facebook Page for upcoming events and submit your events there. 

 

 

29 Oct

Honor Mission BM3 Kevin James Finnerty, Jr.

10/29/2016    
9:00 am
Join American Legion riders and friends  to participate in the escort of the family of BM3 Kevin James Finnerty, Jr., U.S Navy, to his final resting place.2, 3, and 4 wheelers are welcome. Please bring 3x5 American flags with you for a flag line. Current U.S., POW/MIA, Branch of Service, Honor and Remember Flags Only. Rally Point: Dunkin Donuts 1137 Moosic Street Scranton, Pa 18505 Rally Time: 09:00 KSU: 09:20
VMC Touch-A-Truck

VMC Touch-A-Truck

10/29/2016    
11:00 am - 3:00 pm
VMC Touch-A-Truck VMC's Touch-A-Truck event returns to Deptford Mall on Saturday, October 29th from 11AM-3PM. Rain or Shine! Touch-A-Truck is a fun, family event enjoyed by kids of all ages! You’ve seen plenty of vehicles, but now you can touch them! From police cars, fire trucks, bull dozers, cranes, and tanks. Kids will be able to sit behind the steering wheels, take pictures and explore everything about their favorite vehicles. To top it off, we’ll have a hayride, costume contest, trick-or-treat candy and more! You won’t want to miss this Halloween extravaganza! Entry is free for children, $10 for adults. 100% of entry fees and donations benefit Veterans Multi-Service Center, serving those who served since 1980.
29 Oct

Marlton Elks Flag Retirement Ceremony

10/29/2016    
2:00 pm
Join Riders for the 4th Annual Flag Retirement Ceremony at the Marlton Elks Lodge. Riders meet at 7-11, 320 Evesboro Medford Rd, Marlton, NJ at 1:30pm. We will meet up at the 7-11 and ride in together and park in our designated area and dismount. Some of us (depending on how many flags) will be given a flag to hand off for proper retirement (burning). Our local FD, PD will be on hand as well as state dignitaries, senators, congress folks etc. Taps and some bagpipes will be on the menu as well. A free catered spread is to follow for those wishing to stay for a bit.
29 Oct

Spaghetti Dinner VFW

10/29/2016    
2:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Price: Adult are $8 kids under 12 are $4. Dinner includes: Spaghetti with meat sauce Salad Buttered Roll Desserts Tickets are available at the post. See your Bartender or you can contact the Commander (Kevin) or Sr Vice (Bob). Drinks can be purchased at the Canteen. Spread the word and we'll see you there!  
 


PATRIOT CONNECTIONS DOG TAG PROJECT

The Patriot Connections DOG TAG PROJECT MISSION: Return dog tags that were lost and found to the veterans they belong to or their families. If you believe we may have your dog tag please contact Director of Research/Returns Sue Quinn-Morris at squinn9807@aol.com or 856-495-7270.

THE DOG TAG COLLECTIONS

SOUTH JERSEY COLLECTION – This collection of dog tags (450) journey home began in 1993 from DaNang and China Beach area in Vietnam where they were being sold in shops. Gloucester County Time Reporter Jim Six asked the then Deptford Police Chief Ray Milligan to purchase as many as he could and bring them home, as Milligan traveled back and forth to Vietnam for Operation Smile. He brought back 450 of them and gave them to Jim Six. Over the years several people/organizations worked with Jim Six on returning some of the dog tags. In 2010, he gave the rest to us to try and locate and return the rest of them. With much effort and research, we have located many, completed returns and have more returns underway throughout the United States. 

BOUGOURD COLLECTION - This collection of dog tags began their journey home after British Army/Navy veteran, Aaron Bougourd, received them from the family of Major Thien in 2006. Bougourd had been volunteering for the Father Ray Foundation Orphanage in Thialand when he met Major Thien, and helped him find his lost family in Vietnam. Thien, a South Vietnamese officer living as a refugee. Major Ly Kim Thien was commissioned as an officer of the Republic of Vietnam Air Force in 1964 and served in several capacities throughout Vietnam up until the fall of Saigon in 1975. It was after this that he was sent to a communist reeducation camp, where he was tortured and forced to denounce his anti-communist beliefs. In 1994 he escaped Vietnam on foot through Cambodia and on to Thailand, which is where Aaron Bougourd met him. Thien’s family, as a token of appreciation, gave Bougourd some dog tags they had found at Ben Hoa Air Base. Aaron, a resident of the UK, reached out and sent some of the dog tags to Patriot Connections Dog Tag Project to help return them. Returns are underway. 

SANTAYANA COLLECTION - Touring the Ho Chi Minh trail in 1998, Wall Street trader Manny Santayana stumbled onto a Vietnamese man who made a living out of extracting bombs from the ground, grinding up the metal and selling it for profit. Sometime he would stumble upon dog tags from U.S. soldiers, which he would collect and store in an ammo bag under his bed. Santayana paid him $100 for 105 dog tags and brought them back home.Over the next several years, he was able to make some returns to dog tag owners, but he eventually became too busy to continue with the research. He then enlisted the help of Senator James Beach, who formed a committee for dog tag returns – Quinn-Morris has researched and facilitated returns from this collection. The collection is stored in the NJ State House.

HUTCHINGS COLLECTION - In December 2012, Jack Hutchings, a prominent businessman in Florida,  had been traveling on his yacht in the Solomon Islands. There, the villagers gave him some American WWII dog tags they had found. He brought them home in hopes of getting them returned to the veterans/families. . Upon returning home, he stumbled across a newspaper article in the Orlando-Sentinel about the dog tag return to USMC Vietnam veteran, James Alderman that we did. This prompted him to contact us in hopes that we could located and return the dog tags to the veterans/families they belong to.

MISC COLLECTIONS - From time to time we are contacted by people that have found dog tags and are looking for help in returning them. As long as they are looking to do so with NO CHARGE to the veteran, we do aide them in finding and returning.

Organizations helping with Dog Tag Project The following organizations have and continue to aid with the return of the dog tags nationwide; Nam Knights of America MC, American Legion Riders, VFW Riders, Warriors Watch Riders, Patriot Guard Riders, various American Legion Posts and VFW Posts. Returns have taken place in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Florida, Illinois, New York, Arizona, Tennessee, Connecticut, Oklahoma, Ohio, Maine, Kentucky, Washington DC, Oregon, Texas, California, Washington and Michigan.

It is essential to the Project that the dog tags are handled and delivered to the veterans and/or their families in a dignified manner.  From the moment the dog tag is handed off, to the moment it reaches the hand of the veteran, the dog tag is well cared for and attended to, to ensure that it arrives to the veteran/family safely. If you believe we may have your dog tag, or a dog tag that belongs to a family member or friend, please contact Director of Research/Returns Sue Quinn-Morris at squinn9807@aol.com or 856-495-7270.

* Over 100 dog tags have been reunited with the veterans/families they belonged to. Please bear with us as we update the dog tag return stories and dog tag lists *