EVANSVILLE, Ind. (WEHT) — Landing late Saturday night, the Honor Flight of Southern Indiana returned to Evansville and veterans were given a warm welcome home. 85 veterans and their guardians took the trip of a lifetime, a one day trip to Washington D.C.
For many, it was their first time seeing the monuments dedicated to them. Those veterans came back to a parade full of friends, family and servicemen who flew on the honor flight in the past.
Mildred Bruner was a nurse in the Army Air Corp in WWII and was stationed in Mississippi. She went on the flight 7 years ago.
“It was a great honor that they sent me to Washington D.C. so I could see our capitol. I had been there once before, but it has been a while,” she said.
Normon Coleman and Edwin Ball both traveled on the honor flight in 2017 and say it was the trip of a lifetime.
“It was great, I got to see all the monuments, and it was just a great day that we were able to be honored for, for my two years of service that I put in,” Ball said.
“It was one of the greatest days you will have. Anybody that is eligible to go and doesn’t go is really really missing something that’s great. It is a tremendous day,” said Coleman.
Don Burner served the Air Force. He says he will never forget the day he flew to Washington D.C.
“I’ve been in Washington D.C. but never like this, where you rode on a bus and saw the changing of the guard,” he said.
This was the first honor flight in two years due to the pandemic. Organizers say the past few years have not been easy.
“The pandemic put a big dent in it for two years, and we lost some veterans that didn’t get to go which is totally sad, but we have their pictures and are honoring them here,” said Mo Julian, an Honor Flight volunteer.
Organizers say this is a year long process.
“We do it for one purpose. If it is good for the veteran we do it,” Julian said.
