Peoria Standard

U.S. Marine vet Ryan Ortega has been named Veteran of the Year by the Tazewell County GOP.

A native of nearby Pekin, Ortega and his son rode their bikes across the country to help raise nearly $14,000 for the Greater Peoria Honor Flight. Ortega and his son, Ty, began their trek from  Camp Pendleton in California and finished at Camp Lejeune in North Carolina.

Honor Flight programs send veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the memorials and experience a day of honor and thanks

Ortega said he felt compelled to do all he could to raise the money so he could send veterans on Honor Flights based on his lifelong admiration for the U.S. Armed Forces. Before he joined the Marines, an uncle also served and his grandfather was a Korean War veteran.

“I always do veteran events and help out when I can,” he said. “I’ve always been intrigued by Honor Flights and thought they were a great idea. I’ve seen how they affect veterans in positive ways and just wanted to be a part of that.”

After far surpassing his initial goal of raising $1,000, Ortega will be able to fund more Honor Flights than he had hoped for.

“Marines I’ve served with, and some I’ve never met, have put us up in hotels,” he said. “They’ve provided meals for us along the route. We’ve learned it’s a very small world, and it’s been an amazing network of people who have come out.”

For more information, check out Ortega's Gofundme page.