LETTERS RECEIVED AND POSTED

The Blue Knight Spirit Is Alive and Well.

Hello Brother and Sister Blue Knights,

I recently witnessed a situation involving a new member of Tennessee III, that I feel I need to share. First, a little recent history. Earlier this year I had a prospective member approach me at a FOP meeting wanting to know more about the Blue Knights and what she would have to do to qualify for membership. I talked with her for a while and answered her many questions. I did find out that she was thinking about buying a motorcycle and taking a safe rider course. I found out a little later that she did indeed buy a 600 cc motorcycle, and had scheduled to take her class.

A month or so went by when a familiar face attended our monthly meeting. She let me know that she successfully completed the safety course and had obtained her Tennessee motorcycle endorsement. She also let me know that she had sold the 600 cc bike and had bought a more comfortable Kawasaki 125. I agreed with her decision and applaud her for knowing her limitations being a new rider and all. She sure seemed to be Blue Knight material from what I could tell. Her application was accepted, voted on, and sent to International. The next meeting she was given her new membership package, and boy was she excited.

Tennessee III is an active riding chapter and offers an eclectic membership that caters to all kinds of riders, from local poker runs to cross country trips. Our numbers on rides vary greatly as we can not always work around everyone's work schedule. Tennessee III hosts a Heaven I Memorial Ride each summer that takes us to the gravesides of four of our brothers that have transferred to Heaven I. This ride takes us to three cemeteries locally, then to Kingsport, TN where we always meet up with members from TNVI. Our new member opted to travel to the first three locations, but felt she was not ready to travel in a group ride to Kingsport. Wow, she makes good decisions and is not forcing her abilities. I later find out she is riding all over town and chalking up many miles on her 125 cc bike.

One trip our Tennessee III chapter tries to attend is a yearly Fall Foliage weekend hosted by our friends at KY III. Plans were made, rendezvous locations presented, and the times to meet were discussed. Our new member really showed an interest in going, but had questions since she had never been camping, and to that point in her riding career, had never made a ride longer than 60 miles. I offered to pack an extra tent, chair etc. and her borrowed sleeping bag. I met with her the night before to pick up her sleeping bag. The weather forecast showed rain for the morning of our departure and I told her if she would be more comfortable driving her car that there was no shame in that, since it was going to be over 180 miles to Lexington. She quickly let me know she was riding her bike since it was her first road trip and camping experience as a Blue Knight. I let it go at that.

Our plans were to meet at 9 AM, travel 25 miles to meet with two other members, eat breakfast, then ride to Lexington. Several other TN III members would be meeting us in Lexington, KY later that night after work. The weather forecast had been right on the money. It is never fun to start a ride in the rain, but knowing that I had to meet others at 9 AM pushed me out the door. The roads were slick and the commuter traffic was heavy. This seemed to be the first rain fall in over a month. What a great way to start a ride. When I arrived at 9:15 AM I saw our new member standing at the market already fueled up and wondering where we were. The other rider showed up about 10 minutes later, being an experienced rider, he also hates to start out in the rain. We line up and head north to meet with others.

With our bellies full with breakfast and a pre ride planning session, we plan out our rider arrangement. We put our new rider behind the first bike while I would ride behind her, in the event she has any problems. The rest fall in behind us. The rain was now a torrential storm with stinging rain, low visibility, and heavy fog developing the farther north we traveled. I pulled up close and asked if she was OK and she never wavered and said “let’s ride.” Blue Knight Spirit or a little crazy…… I couldn’t tell at that point since I was having trouble seeing tail lights in front of me. Here, a new member, on her first real road trip, in a soup of precipitation, riding a 125 cc bike with NO wind shield, up Jellico Mountain that causes me to downshift my 1550 cc’s to maintain speed., and she’s moving on. We outrun the rain as we fuel up in Corbin, KY. We put away our rain gear and continue northbound.

Once we arrive at the Kentucky Horse Park Campground we meet our friends with KY III and are shown where to pitch our tents. I start unpacking my Bushtec trailer and get ready to set up two tents, one for myself and the other for the new rider. She jumps right in and wants to help. Remember she has never been camping before and this is her first attempt at raising tents. We get the tents set up. She is a fast learner and is now helping other members with setting up their tents. She is showing no ill affects from her first 180 mile ride and is now looking forward to all the weekend would offer. Later that night when our second wave of TN III members start arriving in the dark, she is the first one helping set up their tents. By now I am starting to rethink the earlier “crazy” thoughts that I had about her and am leaning towards the idea of witnessing Blue Knight Spirit firsthand.

Kentucky III always put on a super weekend with great food, great friends and some great riding opportunities. There is not a lot of down time since there are so many old friends to see as well as meeting new ones. We took a ride to Frankfort for a Kentucky Folk Life Festival. We take in the sites and head back to the campground for the evening activities that would include prizes, awards, and an all-you-can eat steak dinner. Members of KY III even came up with a TV for us to watch the Tennessee football game. I guess now I can introduce you to our new member that has showed me the Blue Knight Spirit is alive and well. Kim “Pippie” Pippens is that new TN III member.

After the football game, as we head back to the tents Pippie says……. This has been a great weekend. “The Blue Knights are a big family that takes care of one another.” She continued that her brother and sister Blue Knights have been there for her even before she joined. We answered her questions, encouraged her to attend the safe rider course, and accepted her as a member.

The following morning, tents were packed away, coffee was drank, and plans for our return to Knoxville were made. I had time to reflect as we rode back the 180 miles south. I witnessed a new member, on her first real road trip, riding a 125 cc bike, having finished her first Blue Knight event. I thought about my first rides and events as a Blue Knight and how excited I was back then. I had the opportunity to think about all of the Blue Knights around the world that I have met and consider to be friends. I got to think how our new members are introduced to the Blue Knights. Will they have positive experiences to look back on?

I know the Blue Knight Spirit is Alive and Well. I saw it. I felt it. I have it. I want to share it. I hope you get to meet Pippie one day. I know she will be attending more events in her future because she has the Blue Knight Spirit. She rides with Pride….. and is proud to be a Blue Knight. Pippie…. Yes we are family and will take care of one another. That is what families do.

She is looking for a bigger bike now, and she is always welcome to ride with me because she has showed me………….

The Blue Knight Spirit Is Alive And Well.

TC Hicks (Nov. 2005)

JULY 2007~ after returning from International Convention in Milwaukee, WI

TC,

     TC would you please pass this letter on to all members.

     First, I would like to thank TC, Tasha, Alan, and Tracey for helping on my first long distance ride. In the past I have never really rode more than a couple of hundred miles at one time so this was going to be a challenge for me. We left on Friday the 13th. if anyone did not know, so that should have been a clear omen in itself. I am very glad to say that Friday the 13th. was not a factor. We left Knoxville around 5pm. and only rode a little north of Lexington, and stayed at mini motel, "MicroTel" ....boy are those rooms huge. We really started our journey an Sat. when we rode to White Pigeon, Mich. to stay with Tracey's brother and his family, who own a very nice country inn, which we stayed for free. Thank you Tracey. White Pigeon is Amish Country which I had never seen before, families with their horse drawn buggies, plowing by mule and mowing with a sling sickle. If we had turned around and came home I would have seen more than I have seen in a long time. The view from a motorcycle is so different you have to pay attention to your travels, not like in a car where you are talking on the phone or fighting with kids..... it's more personal. We left Sat. morning after a great breakfast next to the Little Country Inn, and we were on our way. The next big challenge was CHICAGO, which I had no idea of. We were not as bad as some going through Chicago, but I think it took us about 2 hours to go about 10 miles, TC correct me if I am wrong, Chicago was somewhat of a blur for me. Alan and I had never been to, or close to Chicago so we talked everyone into going through Chicago instead of using the by-pass. I don't think we will do that again. We survived that part of the trip and then it's on to the Conf. We only ran into about 30 minutes of rain for the entire trip which I was very happy about. When we made it to Milwaukee it was fairly easy finding the Hilton, the city has major construction going on there so we had to take a detour through Little Havana, I think, I was looking for Carlos wanting me to say hello to his LITTLE FRIEND, just kidding. We made it to the hotel and the Hilton International was very nice. I was by myself so I kind of put on this poor act of being by myself to the reservationists and she gave me a free upgrade. I got one of the suites, King bed, extra large room on the end, two separate views it was nice. I was very happy I had made the trip. We met old friends, which were new to me and went to experience the city. Milwaukee has a water front that runs through the middle of the city with numerous restaurants and sidewalk cafe's, also a great experience.

    OK to the work part of the trip, we had a few meetings to attend and that was exciting to see the different states and countries represented. Now back to my adventure. We went on a ride that took us to Green Bay, home of the Packers, Lambeau Field. This was my first trip to a professional stadium it was smaller than I thought , enjoyable none the less. I guess I was comparing it to U.T. stadium, now that's a stadium. Lynn you were right we stopped in a few Harley shops along the way. I can't say much I bought some Genuine Harley highway pegs for my Honda, don't worry they don't have Harley on them anywhere. In all fairness TC had a driving light to go out and we were trying to find the right light. I had a brake light fuse to go out and Alan had a set screw to come loose on his gear shifter and that was all of our troubles. Well I had one other problem going through the toll booths. Alan thought it would be easier if he paid since he was up front to help us and to save time. That was a great idea until I thought the attendant that was motioning me through the gate, and was only wanting me to come closer for a count.Well I went through the gate as it was coming down and now I have a nice yellow-orange color on my windshield. I guess I have one piece of advice traveling to a foreign land like Chicago or wherever we were "know the Toll Booth Rules."

    Wis. put on a very good conf. I did not know what to expect for breakfast, but it was good, they tried to make gravy, not one of their strong suits. Wis. is known for 3 things Miller beer, Wis. cheese and BRATWURST, I had never had a true bratwurst with sour kraut. I should have known any food with the word WURST in it, it might not be good. The sour kraut was good and the bratwurst was ok, but the real identifying characteristic was the end result, please ask TC and Alan what color it is when it passes not a pretty site. We took a tour through the Miller plant and yes you guessed it we got samples. The first stop we got a 16oz. sample, we all thought if this is how the other two stops are going to be we are going to a trailer because we are not going to be able to ride. The next two stops for samples were a little smaller 10oz. The entire time we were at the brewery all we could smell were green beans, and the longer we stayed the hungry we got. We had heard about this place called Slim's, (sounds like a safe place to eat), the address was 1st. street and Florida. We asked at the Harley shop for directions to Slim's and the locals said they recommend not to go there after dark. Well we decided to go any anyway by now it is about 8pm. getting dusk. We pulled up to Slim's and she was right, a hole in the wall after a few minutes of discussion, do we go in or not, we went in. The people were extremely nice the food was excellent, they had 24oz. porterhouse for 16.95, 12oz. sirloin 10.95 very surprised.

     I know of one thing I can recommend to the people up north .....it is okay to put sugar in your tea and coke products are good too. We could not find tea with sugar and only found a very few places with coke products but we survived. I am sure I have left out a lot but I guess you are getting tired of reading so I will tell you more when I see you, but before I go If you have not been on, or to a conf. or better yet an International Convention.... you are missing out. I had no idea of the friendship and helpfulness that is offered and rendered at these functions. I belong to, and have been on other law enforcement conf. trips and they do not come close in comparison with the Blue Knight family. I again want thank TC, Tasha, Alan, Tracey for there help and patience with the new guy, I will remember this until our next conf. I also want to express to all who have not attended a conf. small or large once you attend you will always attend it has been a very rewarding experience. I now carry with me a deeper meaning of "Ride with Pride."



                                        Thanks again,

                                               Rick Roach...

The Tennessee III Chapter continues the Blue Knight Spirit.

June 1, 2008

I have written letters before concerning our TN III members and what the "Blue Knight Spirit" is, and I have to tell you it is very much alive and well. I have seen participation from our chapter members that could not rival any earlier years. Some of us "ol timers" can remember the days where we might only have a couple of members show up or ride in any events. Our members have recently taken the challenge and lived up to what it means to be a Blue Knight.

My most recent observations are only spanning the last month, covering the Baby Gracie Event, the TaTa/Cruise For A Cause rides, the Pigs In The Smokies, and today's Norman Rickman Benefit. I see TN III members pitching in and working hard, all for a common goal.... WE are Blue Knights and this is what we do! We have lots of reasons to be proud of our chapter and its' members. I see some of the older members getting back in the groove. I see our most recent members taking up the reins and serving the chapter and our communities well.

I want to thank each and every TN III member for their ideas, opinions, professionalism, and above all.... Having and Showing Their Blue Knight Spirit!

It would be impossible to get each and every member at a specific event or ride, due to work and family schedules, but this past month or so has been a true blessing to me. I see the drive in peoples hearts to be the best Blue Knight they can be. I see new friendships being made and old ones rekindled. I see members talking about future events. I see members congratulating each other for a job well done. I see volunteers that really want to help our chapter in any way they can. With a few directions given, they pick up and run with any task given. Most of all..... I see our TN III members having fun again.

In closing, I want to tell each and every one of our members that they are doing a super job. I ask you to keep up the energy and our chapter will surely benefit. We still have lots on our TN III table for this year. We are still looking for members to sit on the 911 Remembrance committee. I encourage you to continue to sell our raffle tickets. I still have 17 more packs of tickets to offer anyone that can sell them. Remember.... the money raised during this first ever TN III raffle is money to be used to help the chapter members as we travel to future conference meetings and fun rides. If we are able to sell every ticket, the chapter will benefit extremely well. I hope this becomes a yearly fund raiser for us. We need every members help though. I will bring the tickets I have left to the next meeting.

Again THANK YOU TENNESSEE III BLUE KNIGHTS, for everything, The Blue Knight Spirit is still alive!,

TC

June 29, 08
Hello Brother and Sister Blue Knights,

I wanted to take this opportunity to thank everyone that has taken the opportunity to help sell our 1st Annual TN III Raffle Tickets. A special Thank you has to go out to those that helped sell them at Coyote Joe's during their Big Twin Blowout during the Honda Hoot. We got rid of several booklets there with the help of Tasha, Tracey, Alan, Kim, Randy, and Kristen, and myself. We sold the booklets over a Friday and Saturday night, and shared a tent with Handlebars. Randy donated a scale remote control Road King Classic and for each ticket sold during that event entered the individual in both drawings. The winner was tickled and even approached Scooter Shine about installing LED lights under it.

The Basics of our 1st ever TN III Raffle:

There are a total of 1000 tickets to be sold at $5.00 each. If every ticket is sold, that would boost our general operating account by around $4940.00 (minus the cost of the tickets). This is the account that we could draw funds for our members, if they decided to use it on future trips, events, etc. Last year we were able to send anyone that wanted to go on our annual camping trip in Kentucky (hosted by KY III), and several took up the opportunity to have most of the Culpeper, VA trip paid for. We also were able to cover the cost of our Annual Awards/After Christmas Party with steak dinners and all the fixings.

Our DEADLINE TO RETURN THE MONEY AND TICKET STUBS (or unsold tickets) is our July meeting.    JULY 10, 2008....... JULY 10, 2008....................... JULY 10, 2008....

We will be drawing the winners during our planned TN III / Heaven I Memorial Ride which is slated to take place on JULY 13. So you understand the urgency of this email.

I have in hand only 214 sold ticket stubs which is only $1070.00, which is only a fraction of what we want to raise for the chapter. Several members have signed out booklets, but many others have not. I still have 14 booklets (20 tickets each) that have NOT been checked out. The loss of the sell of these booklets lower our bottom dollar by $1400.00 from the possible $4940.00 we could have if all books are sold.

Several members have secured donated goods and items to be given away during this 1st Annual TN III raffle. Our hats need to go out to Paul and Teresa Arnwine for their most generous donations of the pool table, clocks, street lantern, and many other goods. They were able to get most of these items at a discount, but money did come out of their pockets to help our TN III Chapter.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE A BOOKLET OR EVEN MORE..... Please contact me ASAP, as our deadline is soon. I am off of work Tuesday- Friday, so I will try my best to get them to you. It would be a shame to not sell every ticket, since the money will directly help our chapter. Our general fund is usually only funded by $5 per member at renewal time, and our members felt this was a worthwhile endeavor. My cell number is 661-2811.

Also remember if you enjoyed any hospitality or meals during the Pigs In The Smokies, the chapter funded you to be able to do that.

Please help us with these last booklets, as I said, it directly helps out chapter.....

Ride With Pride

Next meeting is July 10, 2008 at Louis' (Ticket stub and money Deadline)

TN III/ Heaven I Memorial Ride July 13, 2008

TC