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I thought I would share what I did last Saturday . I was fortunate to chosen as a guardian for the Freedom Honor Flight . I filled out paper work almost 3 years ago for my father and I . For those of you who don't know what a Freedom Flight is. It totally funded by private donations . The Freedom Flight started by flying WWII vets to Washington DC to see the WWII memorial and others. It is a one day event in which they fly out at 7 AM and are back by 10 PM. They started taking Korean Vets now since the WWII Vets that want to go and are healthy enough are done going. Our flight had 22 WWII vets and 68 Korean vets. They take two flights a year locally out of LaCrosse, WI.
My father is 83 and a Korean war Vet. He came home on a strecher 60 years ago. He never talked about the war until 10 years ago at the 50th anniversary. He started looking up guys in his unit to see if they made it back.
This is top notch organization that puts a lot of time and effort in to make sure the vets have a great day that they deserve. As a guardian I was responsible for watching two Vets. It start at the hanger at 5 30 AM with a lot of fan fare . Greeted at Dulles airport with crowds of cheering people . Police escort all day for the four buses . Met Bod Dole at the WWII memorial (he's 91) . My father got wore out and had use a wheel chair on and off during the day based on how much walking was involved. I heard some great stories during the day, not so much battle, but basic training and other humorous excursions. The vets had a ton of fun and were greeted back by a hanger full of people , marching band , and fireworks.
What a great way to spend the day. Not much anymore but as a forklift driver I used to get to talk to lots of mostly Korean War vets who were tractor trailer drivers. Those guys have HONOR written on over them. Every now and then I would get one to open up and talk and their stories and the ones with the Chinese human waves trying to take out the GI's bunkers while the GI's were working on them with their Brownings were exciting.
Tell your father thank you and be glad you still have him. My dad would be 87 last month.----6
1st. Gen. Colt SAA’s, 1878 D.A.45 and a 38-55 Marlin TD
A GREAT program. My cousin Roy, a WWII D-Day vet, got to enjoy one of these trips. Talked about it for weeks later, more than he ever talked about the actual war.
Hand salute and many thanks to you Dad for his service.
Rob
Proud to be Christian American and not ashamed of being white.
May your rifle always shoot straight, your mag never run dry, you always have one more round than you have adversaries, and your good mate always be there to watch your back.
Because I can!
Never grow a wishbone where a backbone ought to be.
Sixgun wrote:What a great way to spend the day. Not much anymore but as a forklift driver I used to get to talk to lots of mostly Korean War vets who were tractor trailer drivers. Those guys have HONOR written on over them. Every now and then I would get one to open up and talk and their stories and the ones with the Chinese human waves trying to take out the GI's bunkers while the GI's were working on them with their Brownings were exciting.
Tell your father thank you and be glad you still have him. My dad would be 87 last month.----6
My father was a machine gunner. The night he got injured , my father notice a bunker wasn't firing. So he ran down to get it going ,tapping someone on the shoulder to give him a hand. He got to the bunker cycle the action and just as the other guy shut the door they were hit with a mortar round. He laid there most of the night , then spent 6 months in a hospital in Japan. He told me this about 10 years ago. So I understand why he never talked about it. He just put it behind him and moved forward in life.
jnyork wrote:WWII Honor Flights were terminated here in Wyoming last year, no more vets left to go on them.
The LaCrosse chapter has over 300 people on it's waiting list. One of the reasons is that the Rochester , MN chapter stopped flying Vets after the WWII Vets were done. So the southern MN Vets sign up in LaCrosse. The LaCrosse chapter says as long as they have Vets that want to go , they will try to get them their. But they only do 2 flights a year . One in the spring and one in the fall.
Tell your father I said thank you for his service if you would. Sadly there are too few left these days.
RustyJr.
Life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes.
I have coffee every Wednesday with a 90 yo Marine who was in the Pacific during WWII. He is sharp as a tack and has a fine sense of humor. He has been a huge help in putting together a project to house American Legion Vets, and once I told him he had earned himself a cold beer. He said he'd have to take my word for it, he had never had a beer in his life. I told him it was never to late to
Start drinking.
In Memphis Diane Hight started an organization several years back named "Forever Young" that is similar to Freedom Flight.
This year they took a group of mostly WWII vets to Normandy and Bastogne, for free.
A few years ago my father (40th Inf. Pacific, USAF Korea) went to DC with them, I paid my own way to go with Dad.
Every where these guys went people applauded, cheered and asked to take pictures with all the vets, I could barely hide my tears, that is until we went to the Wall. A few of the old guys patted me on the back and said "been there, we understand". It was very therapeutic.
We went to the WWII memorial twice because the guys wanted to, both times the "Forever Young" and "Freedom Flight" "boys" were mobbed by young people.
We are losing these men by the hundreds daily, so reach out to any you can.
Dad is still with us and has great tales about everything but being on the line, his older brother was a China Marine, at Guadalcanal, Tarawa, Chosin Resevoir but sadly passed a few years back, when the two brothers were together--wow did the stories pour out!
I love this site and the all you guys for information but also the fellowship.
