Each year on Veteran’s Day, the nation salutes the men and women who served and sacrificed for their country. But many veterans live with the effects of war 365 days a year.
Honor Flight Pittsburgh just recognized a group of local veterans. The 50 veterans traveled to Washington, D.C., to see the war memorials.
Many of those veterans, including Dwain McGee of New Kensington, saw the memorials for the first time.
“It was time,” he said. “I didn’t want to go to the Vietnam Memorial. I didn’t feel I was emotionally ready to go see it.”
Dwain McGee is the father of Channel 11 anchor and reporter Jatara McGee. She traveled with him to D.C. for the special trip.
Approximately 2 million American men were drafted during the Vietnam War. In 1970, at age 21, Dwain McGee got his letter letting him know he’d been drafted.
“Your grandfather served in the military. My uncle served in the Korean War, your grandfather was in World War II. And even though I didn’t join, I got drafted. I said I’m going to go ahead and go,” he said.