Honor Flight

Kurt's Grandfather recently had the opportunity to fly to DC with Kurt's dad as a way to honor WWII Vets. It sounded pretty awesome and I feel privileged to know him. Jack colored several pictures for him and wrote a little letter to thank his Great-Grandpa for his service. Here is the email that Kurt's dad sent to the family afterwards. So cool. 

 Thanks to all who made Dad's Honor Flight such a memorable experience. I will send a couple of emails with pics.

    Our day started at 2:45 a.m. to arrive at St. Louis airport at 4 a.m. After an inbrief, we had breakfast and then flew to BWI (Baltimore). Upon landing, two airport fire engines sprayed a double arc of water salute over the plane as we taxied to the gate. At the gate, we were greeted by a dozen or so military personnel and some civilians clapping and shaking the veterans' hands with thanks. We flew into rain but over the course of the day never experienced more than a mist as we took our tour. We took a luxury bus to DC.

    Our first stop was the WWII Memorial - the primary objective of the flight. Dan Rathert had driven down from Pennsylvania and was there to meet us as we got off of the bus. Before getting off, Sen. Roy Blunt boarded the bus and gave a personal welcome. Sen McCaskill was absent, as might be expected. As we toured the Memorial, Dan provided a great deal of additional detail to our understanding as only a professional military tour guide could. Dad was stopped several times by groups of schoolchildren on day tours and they shook his hand and thanked him for his service. Strangers also came up and took Dad's picture, and asked to have their picture taken with him (Rock Star, I guess!) Dad seemed greatly touched when the children spoke to him and was amazed that any stranger would want his picture. We saw the entire Memorial, stopping at the Missouri column and the Italy/Po Valley campaign site.

     Over the course of the remainder of the afternoon, we had a complete tour of DC by bus - driving by the Capitol, Congress, the White House, and many departments (Justice, State, etc.). The Honor Flight organization of DC provided a wonderful tour guide who gave us a complete discussion of the myriad of famous locations we passed. We toured Embassy Row, Ford's theater, and box lunched it as we went. We stopped at Arlington Cemetery, saw the grave sites of many famous generals, Audie Murphey, and watched the changing of the guard and wreath ceremonies at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. We finished with stops at the Air Force, Sea Bee, Lincoln, Viet Nam,and Korean War Memorials. To say we experienced sensory overload is an understatement.

    After eating a box dinner on the bus, we arrived at BWI for the return trip. At the airport, Mail Call was held and Dad received each of your letters as well as several from schools and churches. It was the highlight of the day. He actually had to stop reading them for a while because of emotion - again, the letters from grandkids and greatgrandkids seemed especially powerful. There were many types of letters and cards, with wonderful artwork by the kids and touching memories from the family. Dad finished his letters just as we were called to board the plane. On arrival in St. Louis at 11:15 pm, we were again honored by a military detail greeting us and saluting as we deboarded. Then came the final highlight - family and friends cheering and hugging Dad as we exited security. Each veteran was given a letter of appreciation before being dismissed to family and friends. After a great reunion, I took Dad to our house. Over our protests and refusing company, Dad insisted on driving back to the farm to "Mom", arriving at 2 pm (nearly 24 hours after beginning his Honor Flight day).

   Thanks again to everyone who made such a special effort to honor Dad. You won't be getting any handwritten thank you notes..don't think I ever saw one by Dad..but know that he was very moved, even a little embarrassed by all the attention for something he saw simply as duty. First set of pictures attached. Steve/