Tiverton Military Man Receives Fuel-Powered Send Off

When a Tiverton military man received the news about his next tour overseas, stress set in, but his friends wanted to make sure he didn’t leave without feeling love and appreciated.

Josh Haskell has been in the military for over 20 years. He has completed seven tours of duty, with three of those tours overseas. For his eighth tour, he will be packing up and heading to Japan with his wife and two children, eight and 10 years old.

“It’s been really stressful,” Haskell said. “It’s the hardest move now that the kids are older. I could’ve retired, but I didn’t. This one is harder.”

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When he is not in his uniform, he’s in one of his Dodge Vipers, his prized possessions on four wheels.

“As a kid, it was always my favorite car,” Haskell said. “Just over four and a half years ago, I purchased my first one.” Soon after, he joined the New England chapter of the Viper Owners Association, where he has been an integral part for three years.

Every now and again, the VOA will host a car cruise or gathering, and Sunday’s event was extra special.

Haskell knew the association would be taking a cruise to Battleship Cove and enjoy a night out with friends, but the other members surprised him by doing a drive-by past his home.

Viper after Viper drove down his street to show love and support to the Haskell family, before each car set off to Fall River, where they celebrated Haskell before his eighth tour.

“It showed me that the car community can be like a second family. For me, it’s the third family, military being the second. It made me feel special," he said.

Haskell plans to retire back to the SouthCoast in the next three to four years, spending time with his family and his beloved Viper community.

Men like Josh Haskell, who continue to answer the call to action, are heroes. The Vipers Owners Association made sure to remind him of that.