This weekend, a truck meant for one injured veteran will be used to help honor several more. 

On Saturday from 1-3 p.m., Billy Howell Ford Lincoln and the Military Order of the Purple Heart are teaming up to honor Purple Heart Recipients to attend a special ceremony and barbecue. The event is part of the Purple Heart Run, an 8,500 mile, cross-country journey from Washington D.C. to California and back to Dallas.

“We were one of the few dealers that were contacted to support this program,” said Brenda Howell, business development manager. “They are going to have a police escort to Alpharetta and to our location.”

The drive will be done exclusively by amputee veterans in purple, mobility-equipped, 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor truck to accommodate veterans who have been paralyzed or lost limbs in combat.

“We feel honored to be one of the dealerships that were chosen,” Howell said. “All that they raise will go toward the Wounded Warrior Family Support group and the Military Order of the Purple Heart. We work hard to be big supporters of the folks who help us to obtain our freedom.” 

At the end of the journey, the truck will be presented to retired Marine Sgt. Marshall Kennedy of Farmington, Arkansas, who lost both legs and heavily damaged his left arm after stepping on an improvised explosive device in Afghanistan on his fourth deployment. 

There are an estimated 1.8 million Purple Heart recipients in the country.

On Friday at 7 p.m., Alpharetta Chapter 576 of The Military Order of the Purple Heart will host a ceremony to welcome the 2017 Purple Heart Truck Run at American Legion Post 201 at 201 Wills Road, Alpharetta.

Billy Howell Ford Lincoln is located at 1805 Atlanta Hwy, Cumming.

To learn more about or donate to the Military Order of the Purple Heart and Wounded Warrior Family Support, go to PurpleHeart.org and WWFS.org.