Tractors roll through Missouri town to help veterans struggling with PTSD

A group of tractor owners hit the road in the first ever American Legion Tractor Cruise to benefit veterans struggling with PTSD. (FOX 4 Kansas City)

PLATTE CITY, Mo. – A group of Northland tractor owners hit the road Saturday in the first ever American Legion Tractor Cruise. It's all to benefit veterans struggling with PTSD.

A sunny Saturday in Platte Ridge Park.

It's the perfect place for quiet a pitstop. Quiet for a little while, but try having a conversation over the roar of 22 tractors.

Almost two dozen tractor owners drove their restored pieces of history through a 40-mile stretch of the Northland.

"Everybody smiles. You wave at folks, they wave back. They love the tractors and every tractor has its own story," said Lenny Hill with American Legion Post 445 in Edgerton.

"At 15 miles an hour, you can kind of look the country over. At 70 miles an hour in a car, you don't see anything except the car in front of you," said Mark Wagoner.

While the ride is leisurely and the day was fun, the reason behind the cruise is much more serious.

"PTSD is one of those diseases that will attack you when you're not looking at it. It's debilitating."

Lenny Hill said this is the first-ever American Legion Tractor Cruise in the country.

They're riding to raise money to give veterans service dogs to help cope with PTSD something many military members battle.

"We're just here trying to do our part to help this program and advance this process."

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