On HFC101 last week, we made Honor Flight Magic! Despite the current uptick in COVID cases leading to a handful of cancellations, we still had a wonderful group of 106 senior veterans on board (1 WWII, 10 Korean War, 95 Vietnam War).
With health our No. 1 concern, we want to thank all of our volunteers who chose to wear face coverings while interacting with our veterans at the airports despite it not being a requirement. We also thank everyone who answered the call for Guardians after a rash of health-related cancellations put us in a bit of a tight spot. Both those who prioritized our heroes’ health in giving up their seat and those who stepped into the void made the day a success!
We want to give a special shout out to the Chicago Police Pipe Band, Chicago Fire Department Pipes & Drums, and the Firefighters Highland Guard of Naperville for leading our Welcome Home parade for the first time since 2019. It was amazing to have them back!
On to the magic: Each flight, we select a handful of veterans to be featured by our talented interview team. They help tell the stories of our veterans with an eye toward unique experiences, historical events, and tales of heroism. These interviews not only give color to each specific flight, but also add to the immense resources we have been compiling as part of our Operation Education programming.
One of the Vietnam Veterans featured this month was Lew Bottando, a three-time Purple Heart and two-time Bronze Star recipient. Shortly after we posted Lew’s interview to our website and Facebook page, we received a message from one of our HFC100 veterans. He had been a high school classmate of Lew’s. Back in the day after graduation, he said, they all went in different directions. He had been told then that Lew was KIA in Vietnam. With a little help from our volunteer Ambassador, they have now reconnected.
Stay tuned for much more depth and detail on this story as only Paul Meincke can tell it in an upcoming episode of our Honor. Thank. Inspire. podcast!
That’s not all: Another veteran, Joseph Opoka, was floored to arrive at the Udvar-Hazy Air and Space Museum and see a Huey Helicopter on display. The plaque for the helicopter identified it as being used by his specific unit during his specific time in Vietnam. “It is very likely I flew on THIS Huey,” he told us. “The day was all very special, but for me it was almost surreal!”
One more: Vietnam Veteran Joseph Matkovcik didn’t listen to his ambassador when we advised him not to drive himself on flight day. Not only did he drive, he parked in one of the economy lots away from the terminal. After his Welcome Home, brimming with energy and emotion, he boarded a shuttle to take him to his car alongside a family returning from vacation.
The 9-year-old daughter with the family recognized the Honor Flight Chicago logo on Joe’s gray polo shirt and said hello. “We wrote thank you letters to Honor Flight Chicago veterans for my class,” said told him. Joe asked her name and where she was from. When she told him, something rang familiar.
“Hold on,” he said, digging through his thick packet of mail call.
He then pulled out a card – the very card this exact 9-year-old had written with her class.
Joe thanked her in person for her kind note.
MAGIC.
The third flight of our 2022 season, HFC102, is on deck this June 15. We will see you then!
Edna Ho and Doug Meffley
Directors, Honor Flight Chicago
“Thank you for an amazing, wonderful time and experience on the Honor Flight. No, I did not get a welcome home coming from Vietnam, but this was well worth the wait. Loved every minute of it. I would definitely, recommend the Honor Flight to any Military person who served in Vietnam or Korea. This was a very warm and exciting Welcome Home. Proud to have Served.”
— Vietnam Veteran Leon Wilson
“There are not enough words to describe my day yesterday, it was awesome. From the early morning arrival at Midway thru returning back home, the day was beyond my expectations. HFC is without a doubt the best well-oiled machine in Chicago, your business plan is the best. I am now in the process of recruiting more vets, so they can experience what I did.”
— Vietnam Veteran Pat Malloy
“I just want to thank you for the amazing “Honor Flight” experience you provided for me Wednesday, May 11,2022. It was very well organized, eventful, and provided the Vietnam Veterans with the “Respect” that they deserved a long time ago. From the motorcycle escort to the unbelievable reception at Midway Airport it as a celebration I will never forget.”
— Vietnam Veteran Mike Small
“Thank you very much for having me included on May’s Chicago Honor Flight. The day was perfect and was most organized. Enjoyed meeting other vets and your complete staff could not have been any better. I was really taken off guard when I arrived back at Midway to find my wife and daughter with her family there. Thank you again.”
— Vietnam Veteran Wayne Mamola
“It was absolutely unbelievable. The greatest surprise was my family there. We knew nothing about it! I had a wonderful time.”
— Vietnam Veteran Robert Gordon
“It was the most awesome and magical experience I could ever have imagined. I would say I was overwhelmed but that word is not even strong enough!”
— Vietnam Veteran Loren Argall
“I just had the privilege of going on the honor flight from Chicago to DC. What an awesome organization they did a phenomenal job and they pulled all the stops out. What a day I was so blessed. And I will say again I do not deserve that what they did for us but I will take it and give thanks and praise. And I remember I am here to serve this country not this country is here to serve me.”
— Vietnam Veteran John Perzee
“Magnificent. Memorable. Once in a lifetime. Humbling. Appreciative. Patriotic. One of the finest days of my life. From the moment we got off the plane in DC, it was stunning and unexpected. Every one of the people I met were truly sincere and honest and real. The firemen who greeted us (in DC) didn’t just shake my hand, they grabbed it. I was never comfortable admitting I served in Vietnam. I’ve finally accepted the fact that I was necessary and doing a job that needed to be done. It took 40 years after the war for me to get Vietnam Veteran license plates. Now I get recognition and thank yous when I’m out. I’m more comfortable with that. (This flight) is the most I’ve talked about my time in Vietnam. After this time I remember the good mostly.”
— Vietnam Veteran Edward Blyshak
“It was like a dream, I couldn’t believe it. I enjoyed getting close to the memorials that I haven’t seen in years. The recognition was fantastic – at the airports with the water cannon salutes and the firefighters standing at attention, the people waiting for us, the volunteers. What a difference from the 1960s. Thank you for a great gift.”
“I had been wearing a POW bracelet for about 25 years. I knew the serviceman was found about four years ago. When I was at the Vietnam Memorial I was able to locate his name and I left the bracelet at the Wall. It was very moving.”
— Vietnam Veteran William Neilson
It was just an incredible thing–a very very special experience for me. Everything was first class! You can’t describe it fully until you’ve actually experienced it yourself. At the Air & Space Museum I had the most incredible experience! We saw the Huey helicopter that was used by the 11th Combat Aviation Battalion–the same unit I was in and the exact same plane I used while I was there! I could have flown in that exact helicopter! We took pictures next to the plane and the plaque. Incredible! Because of you folks I was able to experience this!”
— Vietnam Veteran Joseph Opoka
