LOCAL Heroes

Molly Michael & Laurie Enrightphoto by Norman Photography & Paperie

by Danica Low

Heroes Among UsAcross Fauquier, and within Warrenton town limits, there are

heroes among us. Many look and act the part of everyday citizens, but have unsung, remarkable stories to tell – stories that astonish us all. A common chord is always courage, bravery, compassion, and action that goes above-and-beyond. An awareness of others and thinking outside of oneself is part of a hero’s story.

One of these heroes is someone we all know as a local small business owner, who owns and operates a very popular restaurant in town – Molly’s Irish Pub – with co-owner Casey Ward. Laurie Enright has been running this business, initially with her sister Kitty, since her daughter Molly was nine years old. The single mom, with family roots in Arizona, fell in love with the Town of Warrenton while stationed at the Pentagon with the Air National Guard, of which she has completed twelve combat deployments.

Laurie recalls the day the world stood still – September 11, 2001. With construction underway for the restaurant, and her young daughter in tow, Laurie received a phone call with military orders. She would leave for deployment in the days to come. “I asked my sister to oversee the construction of the building (Molly’s Irish Pub) and to care for my daughter. I could not say where I was going, when I’d return, or communicate with them while I was gone.” But, with bravery, she went.

The deployments also had an effect on Molly, now 22. She inherited her mom’s fearlessness, sense of adventure, commitment to duty, and hunger for a challenge. No plans to join the military have

The Long Ride Home

Mother-daughter teaM rides to bring healing to veterans

Above right: Laurie and Molly at the gates of the Heroes Garden. Below right: Directional sign at Boulder Crest RetreatBelow: Main entrance welcomes combat veterans.

been shared, but Molly suggests that travel has been the thing to quench her thirst for discovery and ambition. “I am most happy with my backpack, camera and journal exploring and learning about our world,” she says. Before she turned 18, she had traveled to six continents. As an anthropology student, she spent months studying abroad in Ethiopia living in a small, poor village, living in a hut and walking for water. Molly too, exudes that love for other cultures and humanity – a desire to help her fellow brethren.

Adventure at Every TurnIt shouldn’t be surprising then, that both Laurie and

Molly are motorcycle enthusiasts, sharing a similar sense of adventure and seize the day approach to life. When time allows, they like to ride together to visit new places and meet new people on short day trips on the bikes.

“Molly had been asking for a motorcycle since she was about 12 years old,” says Laurie. “I initially said, ‘after you get your driver’s license,’ to which she saved up all of her tip money for a long time (from working at Molly’s Irish Pub) to purchase a dirt bike.” In October 2013, while Laurie was deployed to Afghanistan, Molly pitched her mother by phone on the idea of a cross-country motorcycle ride when Laurie returned.

“It was something we spoke of for a while after that,” says Laurie. “We had to find the right time.”

Molly had been looking at bikes for a year and a half before she propositioned her mother; she was clearly determined to make it happen. After much discussion, the self-described risk manager and safety conscious business owner and her daughter explored, planned and examined

this notion for a cross-country adventure. Once the timing seemed right, they began putting the pieces in place.

After 29 years of active military service, Laurie retired from duty last October. Molly graduated from Arizona State University last May. The recently retired military veteran and her daughter decided to embark upon this challenging and rewarding cross-country motorcycle journey together, which will begin Memorial Day, 2015.

“We are looking forward to our time together as mother and daughter, but we also want this journey to be about others,” says Laurie.

Giving, and Giving Some MorePhilanthropy and charitable giving has become as

much a part of Molly’s Irish Pub as its renowned beer battered onion rings. The business has raised more than $500,000 for numerous charitable organizations and families in need over the last thirteen years. Most well-known, is its annual 5K race held in March, Wearing of the Green, and involvement with the local charity golf tournament, Philapalooza, coming this July, which raised $22,500 in 2014 to provide music scholarships to local children.

In recent years, Laurie has dedicated the Wearing of the Green 5K to veteran-supporting organizations, “…in light of the thousands of injured service men and women returning home in great need of our support,” she says. “We want to support these war heroes as much as we can,” says Laurie. “We recognize that since 2001, more than 118,000 veterans have suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, and more than 52,000 have been wounded

Custom built cabins at Boulder Crest allow combat veterans to reconnect with their families and themselves in comfort and tranquility.

in action. These men and women and their families need – deserve – our help.”

During her military career, Laurie served as an Intelligence Operations Specialist and then Combat Systems Officer on the EC130J, serving the Air Force Special Operations Command. She volunteered in a military hospital in Baghdad, and has seen much warfare and the effects of war on soldiers, both physically and emotionally.

“With anything in life, you’ve got to believe it in your heart what you’re doing it for,” says Laurie of her philanthropic work. In the spirit of everything Laurie and Molly put their minds to, and as the true humanitarians that they are, they weren’t going to experience this cross-country motorcycle adventure for the sole purpose of enjoyment and recreation. If they were going to do it, it was going to be for others. “I want to give back to my military brothers and sisters,” she says.

Biking for WellnessFor these reasons, the mother-

daughter cross-country motorcycle journey will serve to bring awareness and attention to the Boulder Crest Retreat for Military and Veteran Wellness, www.bouldercrestretreat.org, in Bluemont, Virginia. Their motorcycle ride has turned into a

fundraiser for Boulder Crest, and has been named “The Long Ride Home.” Laurie explains that, metaphorically, this name reflects the long and often

painful journeys our veterans face from deployment, reintegration, physical and mental therapies and difficulty readapting to civilian life.

Boulder Crest is a retreat and wellness center, hosting four log-cabin styled homes, an activity lodge, water sports, outdoor amenities for recreation and therapy, a sanctuary garden and 37 acres of rolling Virginia hills and forestry to be explored.

The mother-daughter team is accepting upfront in-kind donations to support their trip, such as gas cards, food cards, camping supplies, batteries and rain suits – visit www.thelongridehome.org/wish-list-and-donations for a complete list – but one hundred percent of monetary donations in support of this cause go to Boulder Crest Retreat for Military and Veteran Wellness.

And in true fashion, Laurie and Molly have set some astonishing goals. They are rallying the community and regions as far and wide as will hear their call, to help them raise $292,000. This will cover the costs required for Boulder Crest to operate four cabin facilities for military and veteran families every day for a year ($125 a day for 365 days). Boulder Crest is a non-profit organization that survives on donations. Recreational therapy adds approximately $75/day to Boulder Crest’s expenses.

Laurie and Molly tell us that they have also set a goal of riding 10,000 miles over four months to raise awareness for “our beloved veterans.” They are working with a public relations specialist who will help them get the word out to a national audience. But, they recognize most of their support will come from their home of Fauquier. “We are a most generous community, people just need to know.”

After twenty months of planning, Laurie and Molly will fly to Tempe, Arizona, where Laurie was raised and where their family still resides. The week prior, they will ship their matching 865cc parallel twin-engine, 68 horsepower Triumph Bonneville bikes to Tempe, along with their gear and supplies – much of which has been donated and continues to come in from the Warrenton community. They are preparing for their journey to begin on May 25th, Memorial Day.

Their route takes them to Bellingham, Washington, across to Anchorage, Alaska by ferry, and by bike up to Yukon, Canada. They will then head south to Yellowstone National Park, and east to Michigan, Quebec, Boston and down the East Coast right into Warrenton by way of Main Street. After visiting fifteen national parks, multiple military and public safety memorials, numerous Veterans centers and hospitals including Walter Reed Memorial, they plan to arrive in Warrenton on September 30, four months after their adventure began.

Left: Molly and Laurie stand with Boulder Crest Executive Director, Jennifer Marino, outside the activity lodge. Right: The interior of one of the well-appointed cabins suitable for men and women of all abilities.

Heart of CommunityAs Laurie and Molly finalize

the packing and details of their trip over the next six months, they encourage the community to know how it can help. Donations may be made directly through the Long Ride Home Website (cited previously) and Facebook page (www.facebook.com/thelongridehome), and donors will immediately receive a tax exempt receipt from Boulder Crest. Checks may be made out and sent directly to Boulder Crest (mention The Long Ride Home in the memo).

In-kind gifts are accepted and are making a big difference thus far in the mother-daughter team’s preparations. Wolfman Motorcycle Luggage donated duffel bags, saddle bags and tank bags, Happy-Trail contributed the motorcycle side racks and SiteWhirks designed The Long Ride Home Website at no cost. Pledges may also be made by the mile; as Tippy’s Taco House recently pledged .05 cents per mile of motorcycle travel to Boulder Crest.

Molly says, “By liking our Facebook page you can help us build awareness locally and show support as we try to grow this awareness to a larger scale.”

Plans for a welcome home celebration on Main Street is in the works to be held on September 30, when the duo completes their cross-country ride.

Laurie adds, “What amazes me as an adult reflecting back on my life, was the constant and continuous giving of my parents. They define volunteerism. Even with our small income they always were donating

every spare penny to others in need. They taught me that if you have the capacity to help others, that it is your responsibility to do so. That is as much of my DNA as their Irish blue eyes and Cherokee thick, dark hair.”

Healing Begins Here“Boulder Crest is the first privately

funded facility of its kind – a military and veteran wellness retreat – in the country, and it’s here in Virginia,” says Ken Falke, founder and chairman, and 21-year combat veteran of the U.S. Navy and retired Master Chief Petty Officer.

The retreat center offers non-clinical therapies such as art, music, hiking, culinary, equine, yoga, canoeing, knitting, song writing and archery. Special programs such as those for caregivers, outdoor recreation for children of the fallen, communication for couples and multi-day retreat options are also offered.

The retreat accommodates families as well as individuals, and strives to provide an atmosphere where healing and peace can begin. A typical stay is a week, although day or weekend events are sometimes offered. “We use the acronym ‘R&R’ here frequently, but we have coined the term to mean ‘rest and reconnection,’” says Mr. Falke.

Many of the staff and volunteers at Boulder Crest have served in the US military as well. Executive director, Jennifer Marino, United States Naval Academy graduate, retired Marine Second Lieutenant, and CH-46E helicopter pilot, deployed twice in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Of the retreat, she says, “We want to offer our guests a high-impact special

experience when they come to Boulder Crest, but we also want to send them home with new tools they can integrate into the lives.”

She adds, “Our hope is that we can become a model that others can replicate in other parts of the country because the need is obviously greater than we can serve.”

Mr. Falke agrees. “What we’ve built here is beautiful. We’ve been working hard for several years now, and we have an evidence based program that has measurable benefit. We’ve built curriculum around it to help participants and therapists alike that can be shared with like-minded people. We’d like to see our program scaled out to another ten locations around the country. Other people can model this, and we’d like them to. People call us daily to come and see what we’ve done here.”

“Thirteen years of combat (since 9/11) has put people in some situations,” says Mr. Falke.

He and Laurie met through a mutual friend in recent years. “The first time I saw Boulder Crest,” says Laurie, “I knew this was where the 5K funds (and subsequent fundraisers) should go.”

Molly adds, “There is only so much you can learn about the world and about others by going to school.” While she supports education in an academic setting, she says her mom taught her to see the world around her as her classroom, with infinite possibilities.

“We are excited about our cross-country journey. We will be thinking of military and veterans every mile we ride. And we hope that you will be too.”

Left: The music room at the Activities Lodge. Right: Guestroom