Since the early days of our Republic, Washington D.C. has traditionally emptied during the month of August to escape the heat and humidity of the Tidal Basin. For the 109 senior veterans aboard #HFC110 on August 23, we flipped that script! While Chicago scorched under a triple-digit heat index, it was a relatively cool and comfortable day in D.C. in the low 80s for our one WWII, seven Korean War, and 101 Vietnam War veterans.
Our flight numbers were lower than we hope for in this new era of flying a larger aircraft, primarily due to a handful of late cancellations caused by a recent surge of COVID cases. We anticipate packing the plane for the last two flights of the season in September and October!
We were thrilled to welcome four female veterans aboard HFC110, our most on a single flight since our Operation HerStory mission in October of 2021. Included in that total was our WWII veteran, 99-year-old Gloria Kerzner – who will turn 100 in December! Gloria had a fascinating role working at NAS Lakehurst under Admiral Charles Rosendahl, who was a fierce advocate for lighter-than-air dirigibles. Gloria tracked all blimp activity to catalogue a historical record of their use during the later stages of WWII. Read more of her story in this profile on our website.
We witnessed an especially poignant moment at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial when Raymond Ariaz staged a small personal ceremony to honor his brother, Edward. They both were stationed in Vietnam at the same time, and when his brother was killed in action it was Ray who accompanied his body home. After setting out some materials near Edward’s name, Ray sang God Bless America with the help of a VVMF Volunteer.
Finally, we welcomed aboard 19 members of VFW Post 1337 out of Mount Prospect, a group put together by our very own long-time volunteer Jim Parker. Jim exchanged his orange shirt for a gray shirt and by all accounts this group turned the Purple Bus into a day-long salute to camaraderie.
We’re now into the home stretch of the 2023 season and can’t wait to see everyone at Midway on Sept. 20!
Edna Ho and Doug Meffley
Directors, Honor Flight Chicago
“This event was so well organized and the volunteers were just incredible. I was totally fooled by what was going on. From the moment I exited the aircraft, I could not believe the warm welcome that the veterans received. Every time I turned a corner there were even more people. The bagpipers were amazing as well as the bands. Please convey my sincere thanks to your volunteers and all of the people that put this together.”
— Vietnam Veteran Tom Stonis
“Words can’t express how thankful and grateful I am to you all of the Honor Flight Chicago staff and volunteers. I couldn’t believe how many orange shirts there were at the two airports. Please extend my appreciation to all of the orange, blue, green, red (and any other color I may have missed} shirts that made yesterday’s event an absolutely amazing day. I will always remember and be grateful for it.”
— Vietnam Veteran Ronald Mikicich
“I feel that was one of the best days I have ever had. Being treated with respect and the homecoming was off the charts. It was a lot better than when I came home after service. I was called names and things were thrown at me. You absolutely have this nailed down to a tee. It was amazing. I really felt welcomed and loved. Thank you for all you have done for the guys in the post and myself.”
— Vietnam Veteran Les Durov
“The day was fabulous. It was well organized, and everyone knew where they needed to be. The Air Force Drill Team was my favorite! It was so exciting to watch. The most surprising part was Welcome Home at Midway! Being confined to my wheelchair – they all did an exceptional job of keeping me included. It really was a wonderful day.”
— Vietnam Veteran Charles Ohrn
“Words cannot express the gratitude I have for all of your work on my behalf to make the Honor Flight Chicago flight # 110 the most enjoyable and memorable event I could have had.”
— Vietnam Veteran Guy Mylander
“I am impressed with the precision so many volunteers contributed to make Honor Flight Chicago’s 110th flight an amazingly honorable experience. Thank you for your efforts to get us set-up. Logistically, an amazing feat!”
— Vietnam Veteran Steven Ferry
