Army SPC/5 Richard "Dee" Simmons saw and experienced a lot during his time in Vietnam, but nothing stuck with him more -- literally -- than the Agent Orange defoliant that would cake on his skin to the point that it could be peeled off.

Jerry Warren is a born leader, a trait that was instantly recognized in his Army training prior to being sent to Vietnam. Jerry, who is Black, quickly made Sergeant and was placed in charge of a unit comprising all white soldiers. Though they functioned well as a team, there was a prejudicial undercurrent that could not be escaped.

Elaine Ansbro has had a fascination with flying and aviation since she was a young girl. With that in mind, she joined the Air Force during the Korean War in the hopes of taking wing.

Marine Corps Veteran Jerry Sperry received two Purple Heart medals for his service in the Korean War. The first came in South Korea, while the second came during the frozen Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the North.

Marine Corps Lance Corporal Jim Weinstein enlisted in the Marines to escape a troubled youth full of drink and drugs. Jim endured many close calls on the battlefields of Vietnam including one that resulted in his family receiving an erroneous death notice.

Howard Hill joined the Navy at 17-years-old toward the tail end of WWII. With camera in hand, Howard walked the streets of the city and documented first-hand the destructive power of the atom bomb.

Honor Flight Chicago alum Danny Anderson hails from Gardner, Illinois. A town of 1,400 that sits 60 miles southwest of Chicago in Grundy county, Gardner saw five of its young men not return home from Vietnam.

Bill Shoop served as a teletype operator during the latter stages of World War II in Europe, first during the Battle of Bulge and later from the International Military Tribunal known as the Nuremburg Trials.

Our 103rd flight on July 20, 2022, featured 13 teachers and students from our rapidly growing "Operation Education" mission that seeks to connect veterans with local schools to inspire gratitude and service among our youngest generation. This is their story.

Rodney Branch has always been a musician, even in the Army. A trumpeter and bugler, once in Vietnam Branch braved ambush and attack to fly into fire bases and perform TAPS for fallen comrades during the TET Offensive -- and he never missed a note!

Mike Osika was aboard the USS Enterprise on January 14, 1969, when — 75 miles from Pearl Harbor and in preparations to sail to Vietnam — explosions ripped across the flight deck. Mike joined the fight on the deck to save the ship from the inferno that claimed 28 lives and injured more than 300.

Lew Bottando describes himself as lucky. He has been married 50 years to his high school sweetheart, and retired from a long career in the Chicago Fire Department as a battalion chief. His luck began, however, before all of that: he came home alive from the jungles of Vietnam after earning two Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts.