Police Unity Tour Has Personal Meaning for Local Officers

 Sgt. Joseph Markulic knew the ride from New Jersey to Washington DC would not be easy , when he took part in his first Unity Tour.

Markulic was part of a local contingent (along with officers Matthew Cherney, Riaz Motani, Rob Ortenzi as well as Sgt. Mike Martin) who started on the long ride south to show solidarity with their fallen brethren.

"The reason I was riding was for the guys who put their lives on the line and lost their lives," he said. "If I can't make it with a little knee injury then I should just go home."

This year the Howell group will be riding for Lakewood police and former New Jersey State Trooper Marc Castellano. Markulic will also be riding for Trooper George T. Radford of the South Carolina Highway Patrol.

Each officer has a personal connection to someone they're riding for. Not only was Ortenzi a friend of Castellano's, he also was in the Howell Police Explorer's Club with Matlosz. Making the event even more meaningful is the fact that Castellano's brother Nick, an officer in Ocean Township, will once again be joining them on the ride.

The team rode for Castellano last year as well and Markulic said as long as his brother rides with them they will continue to ride in his honor. Ortenzi said he was glad to once again ride for his friend, especially alongside his brother.

"To ride down there with him it was amazing," he said. "When we got down there and we both saw his name on the wall for the first time it was amazing."

Markulic met Trooper Radford's widow during last year's event. She told him she was still attending the event 20 years after her husband was killed in the line of duty. "She said who she was and obviously I was touched that she's down there supporting law enforcement still," he said. 

The Howell officer will be the first to ride for the trooper since he was killed in 1988. "I said I promise you now I'll ride for your husband," he said at the time. 

This will be the first time the local officers will make the trip to see Matlosz's name on the wall. Markulic said that will make the trip that much more meaningful.

"It's close to home," he said. "Everybody knows it was close but now here he is, he's going to be put on the wall."

Ptl. Dave Sussman of the Lakewood Police Department said his group will include seven bikers, three riders on motorcycles and one in a support vehicle. This will be his fifth time making the trip and he said with Matlosz being a part of the ceremony it will make for a memorable event. 

Sussman said the entire experience is memorable from start to finish. "You get to the wall and if the wall doesn't tear you apart emotionally then you're not breathing," he said. "It's amazing." 

For the Lakewood department, this will be their second member in recent years etched on the wall. Six years ago Officer William Preslar was killed in an automobile accident. "We didn't want to have a personal reason to go down there again," Sussman said. "Chris was even more horrible and tragic of a death because of the violence but we obviously hope we won't have another personal reason in the future."

The local riders' trip will start in the Howell parking lot early Wednesday morning. Markulic said he expected close to 250 riders to meet at that time as they begin the long trip south.

It is just the first of many shows of the support the officers will encounter. "Along the ride there were schools out there supporting us, different groups, fire departments, people working in stores, and they all come out and we know they're coming to greet us. It's awesome to see and just feel the support."