The 33rd Honor Flight San Diego Group returned Sunday to a large contingent of people waiting to cheer, clap, shout, and shake hands for the 90 returning veterans on the Fall Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. The Honor Flight San Diego trip to Washington, D.C., occurs twice a year, taking 90 veterans from WW II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War to the nation’s capital to see memorials dedicated to their service. Honor Flight San Diego is a non-profit group run by a team of volunteers and directors. Since 2010, Honor Flight San Diego has flown over 2,000 veterans to Washington, D.C., for this weekend trip. The memorials visited for that weekend include the WW II Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the Marine Corps War Memorial, the U.S. Navy Memorial, the Franklin Delanor Roosevelt Memorial, the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, the Military Women’s Memorial, and the Changing of the Guard at the Arlington National Cemetery. The whirlwind trip includes several dinners with guest speakers and a nonstop Saturday visit to the memorials before returning home Sunday to a huge welcome near the Terminal 2 baggage claim area. Hundreds of people wore red, white, and blue outfits, holding signs, waving flags, applauding, and welcoming these veterans back, thanking them for their service. For many of the veterans, it is a very emotional experience, especially for the Vietnam War veterans who had not received anything in the way of a welcome home after the end of that war. Vietnam veteran after Vietnam veteran said, “We finally got the welcome home we felt we deserved”.
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There were not any WW II veterans on this Honor Flight San Diego trip, only Korean War and Vietnam War veterans. The majority of WW II veterans still alive are in their 90s or early 100s. Estimates say there are only a little over 5,000 WWII veterans still living in California and around 70-80,000 still alive in the United States. The physical limitations of these older veterans can sometimes affect their ability to participate, but Honor Flight San Diego does an amazing job providing every accommodation available, ensuring they can continue to be honored by attending the trip. Each veteran has a chaperone, and numerous Honor Flight volunteers are on the trip to assist. The buses have adequate handicapped accessibility, and the veterans can see every memorial the trip includes.
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For the Sunday celebration, people began lining up around 11:00 am for the anticipated 1:15 pm arrival of the special chartered flight. Jill Leheo was set up at a table to hand out specially made crocheted red, white, and blue blankets the veterans would receive at the end of the human tunnel they would pass through. Jill said she and 2 other ladies made the 90 blankets. Combat Veterans Association members were starting to show up, a group that diligently attends all Honor Flight arrivals. CVMA CA 33-1 and Honor Flight San Diego will be hosting the 6th Annual Heroes Luncheon on Saturday, October 10th at the Escondido Elks Lodge beginning at 11 am. Proceeds go to assist Honor Flight San Diego. You can register to attend at www.CVMA331.org…