JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – There wasn't a dry eye at the Wounded Warrior Project headquarters Thursday as six injured service members were given brand new Harley-Davidson motorcycles.
The wounded veterans thought they were just at a news conference, but they were shocked to find out the real reason they were there.
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Harley-Davidson and Wounded Warrior Project surprised them with the new bikes.
"Looking at the motorcycles and then hearing they are going to be given to us, it just ...," Hector Matascastillo, a retired Army veteran, said as he paused.
The vets were truly overwhelmed by the gift.
"This is like a dream come true," said Raymond "Doc" Andalio, who spent 12 years in the Navy. "As a veteran we dream about these things, and we ride because that's really the only freedom we have now."
The Wounded Warrior Project said bikes are meant to have a therapeutic value for warriors who are dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.
"Being on a motorcycle has always been my therapy," said Marine Corps veteran John Roberts, of the Wounded Warrior Project. "The phone's not ringing, nobody can find you just out on the road enjoying the open air, enjoying the sights. It's incredible."
Harley-Davidson made the special delivery of new 2015 motorcycles to kick off the start of a new partnership between Harley-Davidson and Wounded Warrior Project to help improve the lives of servicemen and women suffering from PTSD.
Motorcycle riding has been known to provide positive therapeutic benefits.
Bill Davidson, the great-grandson of company co-founder William A. Davidson, along with five Harley-Davidson employees and veterans, rode the bikes to Wounded Warrior Project's headquarters and gave away the keys to the wounded veterans.
"It's been hard to keep it a secret because we couldn't wait to unveil them and present them to them," Davidson said.
All six veterans who received a new bike are riders but didn't own a motorcycle anymore, so they were all overjoyed to be back in the saddle.