Honor Flight - Vets of WWII, Korea and Vietnam

TennVet

TennVet

Member
Last fall I was able to travel to DC with a group of Vets. Over the years I have been to DC many times on business but always found an excuse to avoid visiting the Vietnam War Memorial (The Wall). This time I did, and I glad I finally avoided anymore excuses. I was asked to locate the inscription of a buddy's nephew, so I started a list. In total I found the inscription of six individuals that had special meaning to me.

If you are a Vietnam Vet and you have not made that trip consider contacting the Honor Flight organization in your area. If accepted you will experience a well organized tour conducted very professionally at no charge. You may also experience patriotic Americans cheering you on as you walk through the airport with your group. It's a humbling and emotional experience that washes away a forgotten welcome home from years past.
 

Marie5656 said:
My cousin got to go last year. He really enjoyed the trip
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When we left and arrived back in Nashville, we were met by groups on each side of the hallway. They had flags, signs welcoming us home, and thanking us for our service. There was same atmosphere as we passed through Reagon Intl. when arriving in DC and when we departed at the end of the day. I wasn't the only Veteran that had to choke back a lump in my throat or wipe away a tear. I can still think back to that feeling and I at last felt like I had been welcomed home.
 

I saw that one on my last trip to DC, I think. Oh yeah, it will make you cry if you remember Vietnam at all either from the outstanding nightly reports from Walter Cronkite & Co. or because you knew someone who was drafted, or feared the draft, or volunteered. I remember my neighbor joking about moving to Canada if he was called up, even though I was just a kid back then.

I still remember the casualty tally EVERY frickin' night on Cronkite. No letting up on those casualty counts to please any politicians! Not like Bush's wars where so many media outlets were so nicey-nice to him and you had to go to the Internet to find out just how much was being spent on that endeavor and how many people were killed or wounded.

Lord I miss that kind of in-your-face news reporting from the Big Three.

The Honor Flights are a great idea.
 
VintageBetter said:
I saw that one on my last trip to DC, I think. Oh yeah, it will make you cry if you remember Vietnam at all either from the outstanding nightly reports from Walter Cronkite & Co. or because you knew someone who was drafted, or feared the draft, or volunteered. I remember my neighbor joking about moving to Canada if he was called up, even though I was just a kid back then.

I still remember the casualty tally EVERY frickin' night on Cronkite. No letting up on those casualty counts to please any politicians! Not like Bush's wars where so many media outlets were so nicey-nice to him and you had to go to the Internet to find out just how much was being spent on that endeavor and how many people were killed or wounded.

Lord I miss that kind of in-your-face news reporting from the Big Three.

The Honor Flights are a great idea.
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I had resisted visiting the Vietnam Memorial even though I had been in DC a number of times on business. My 94 year old WWII veteran neighbor talked to me about Honor Flight and encouraged me to give it some thought. After he passed away due to Covid I kept recalling his words and then contacted a regional chapter. They are entirely financed by donations, and the trip was well organized with a full schedule for the day. There are similar chapters in every state to my knowledge, and I'm glad that gentlemen next door shared his encouraging words.
 

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