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The 44th Blue Ridge Honor Flight that took nearly 185 participants to Washington, DC on October 14 is now history. But for the 94 veterans aboard the flight, the guardians and support people, the day will be etched in their minds for many days to come.
The flight transported 84 Vietnam veterans, one World War II veteran, four Korean veterans to DC. There were six Gold Star family members with three escorts.
The Blue Ridge Honor Flight also had 23 support persons of doctors, paramedics and leadership as well as 62 guardians accompanying the veterans.
Among Rutherford County veterans on the flight were Jerry Smith, Wayne Camp, Tommy Holland, Eddy Jones, Sam Guffey, Jim Bishop, Mike Chapa and Barry Hill, who is a veteran but served as a guardian on the flight. Other guardians included Ralph Lewis, Patty Chapa Hammett, Lisa Barrett and Rev. Daniel Selman.
Although it was a rainy day that required rain jackets and ponchos, the visits to the memorials went on as planned and the day brought joy and tears to the veterans visiting the monuments, built in their honor.
"This flight was amazing," said Patty Hammett, who was the guardian for her dad, Mike Chapa of Forest City.
"The time, the effort, the planning, the money, the people involved was unbelievable to orchestrate a day to honor our war heroes. We had people at the Washington airport waiting and Asheville airport waiting with flags, banners, and many people to honor them," Patty said.
State Troopers escorted the buses loaded with veterans and guardians in order for everyone to stay together.
"We all laughed when a trooper would have to run someone off that got in between our buses," she said.
Hammett said she was blessed to have been chosen to go as her dad's guardian.
"I wanted to go because he's my hero, but by the time I got home all these men were my heroes, too. I wondered many times that day what all was going through these soldiers' heads. You can pray for them and love them knowing what they lived through, some as young as 15 died as a soldier," she said.
"The ones that survived, said they don't feel like a hero, they were doing their job," she said.
"The guardians there were amazing also. They paid $500 each to be their guardian. Most did not know who they would be a guardian for. They have a true love for our war veterans," she said.
"The veterans fought for our freedoms and are deserving of recognition. The flight is to help them heal, provide closure, and honor them for the job they never got honored for," Patty said.
"The man on the bus in front of me said he was one of the veterans that got spit on when he came back home. As a military brat, I have always honored and loved all that have served but now, I love them even more."
"I encourage all war vets to go. Also, anyone would be blessed to experience being a guardian for the day for them," Patty added.
Eddy Jones of Forest City, who was in the service during the Vietnam War era, but didn't have to go to war, was impressed with how organized the Honor Flight program was down to every detail.
"Their kindness and appreciation for the veterans made the trip to Washington a cherished memory. Even though we had a steady rain at the memorial ceremony, I enjoyed the camaraderie of all the veterans and of the many volunteers that made that special day happen," Jones said.
"The changing of the guard at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetery was a special occasion.
"I would like to thank the people that made this trip possible, all our veterans and the ones who sent the kind thank you cards," Eddy said.
Jim Bishop described the Honor Flight experience as "awesome."
"I can't explain how I felt throughout the day to think about how much time and effort went into this trip to make us veterans feel special. I felt so unworthy when I viewed the WW2 Memorial, Korean War Memorial, and the Vietnam Memorial and thought about those thousands who didn't make it back home," Bishop said.
He said the Honor Flight organization that makes the trip possible, "deserve a tremendous amount of appreciation. They made it special."
Bishop also thanked the guardians who made the trip with the veterans "to meet our every need, I say thank you and God bless you for volunteering to make sure we stayed safe during a rainy day."
Bishop said it was an emotional day for him and when he is thinking about that day, "I get teary eyed."
Lisa Barrett, who travels with the Honor Flight regularly said, "Like true heroes even in the pouring rain, these men enjoyed their special day and felt the love from everyone like they should have many years ago."
Rev. Daniel Selman, also a guardian with the veterans who traveled from Florence Baptist said, "The Blue Ridge Honor Flight is a wonderful organization that honors our veterans by allowing them to be celebrated for the heroes they are. It was my great privilege to volunteer to serve those veterans who have served the cause of liberty before me. I thank the organization for this opportunity and the veterans whom I served."
Because soldiers from the Korean and Vietnam wars never received a warm welcome home, Blue Ridge Honor Flight and other Honor Flights across the country have a mission to change all of that as they work to acknowledge the service of all veterans.
The mission is to allow veterans to know that people see them and acknowledge and appreciate them for responding to the call of duty.
Veterans have an opportunity to fly to Washington, DC to visit monuments and memorials as a group, meet other veterans from the area and receive the thanks they are due, free of charge.
Guardians are asked to pay $500 to accompany the veterans.
Blue Ridge Honor Flight schedules two or three flights each year.
