Rolling Thunder veterans group fuels passion of Warner Robins man
James "Buster" Hickam has found his passion: raising awareness about military men and women who never made it home from combat.
Hickam, a Warner Robins man who served in the U.S. Army from 1981 to 2003, is a co-founder of the local chapter of Rolling Thunder, a nonprofit national veterans organization.
Organization members use their motorcycles to draw attention to their cause, hence the name Rolling Thunder. But the heart of the organization, Hickam said, is to remind the community of those who didn't make it home from war.
To accomplish that goal, Hickam won approval last week from Warner Robins council members to donate POW-MIA flags to be flown daily at City Hall and 14 other public buildings, an empty chair to displayed inside City Hall and decals to be placed on public safety vehicles.
"We wanted to show the public that we care," Hickam said.
Hickam initially asked for the chair to be set in place once City Hall renovations are complete, but he said he has since received word from the mayor's office that there is room for the chair's placement now.
He'd like to formally present the chair, flags and decals during the week of National Former POW/MIA Recognition Day on April 9.
"It will be a reminder that they are welcome home," Hickam said.
His organization provides the chairs, flags and decals free of charge, relying on donations from businesses and the community, Hickam said.
The local chapter also has the blessing of the Houston County Board of Education. POW-MIA flags donated by the local chapter already are flying at all five high schools, Hickam said. "We'd like the community to follow suit," he said.
The group also has approval to place a POW-MIA stadium chair at McConnell-Talbert Stadium on South Davis Drive and at the new Freedom Field now under construction at Cohen Walker Boulevard and Bear Country Drive near Houston County High School, Hickam said.
The chapter also has garnered approval from the Perry City Council to place a POW-MIA plaque at City Hall. He expects the group also will make an appeal to Centerville leaders down the road.
For Hickam, three events helped create the passion he has for the nonprofit and the cause it champions.
Several years ago, Hickam said he learned that his children did not know what POW or MIA meant. He desires to educate the next generation.
Second, Hickam said he heard the story of how U.S. Air Force Col. Patricia S. Blassie, who is stationed at Headquarters Air Force Reserve Command at Robins Air Force Base, and her family were able to identify her brother's remains through DNA testing and bring him home to St. Louis.
Unknown to the family, 1st Lt. Michael J. Blassie was interred at the Tomb of the Unknowns at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on Memorial Day 1984, according to Patricia Blassie's biography.
Michael Blassie, an Air Force pilot whose jet crashed in South Vietnam in 1972, was disinterred from the tomb in May 1998, identified by DNA testing and brought home to his final resting place at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery in St. Louis on July 11, 1998.
Inspired by the story, Hickam said he wants to raise awareness of families in Middle Georgia whose loved ones still have not come home.
Finally, Hickam and a friend joined the massive Rolling Thunder Ride for Freedom in Washington, D.C., on Memorial Day 2010. Upon their return, they decided to found the local chapter of Rolling Thunder, which officially is called Rolling Thunder Georgia 3. "It's all about raising awareness," Hickam said.
For more information, contact the local chapter at rolling.thunder.ga3@gmail.com.
This story was originally published March 27, 2016 at 9:17 PM with the headline "Rolling Thunder veterans group fuels passion of Warner Robins man ."