Honor Flight – Day Three

This morning we got up and have a lovely breakfast before heading out again. This time, to the other end of the Mall to visit the other memorials. Before we left we ran into a school group – and these teenagers were so excited to meet Veterans from World War II. They helped all of our Vets get out to the bus and helped load the bus as well. They wanted a picture with the guys and they obliged.

If you notice in the picture the Vets on the far right are laughing at the girl right in front of them. She was complaining it was cold – it was already 70 and quickly going up. They thought she was cute

Vets in this picture: Bill, Smitty, Vince, Van, Ed, and Don.

I spent my day with Bill again; he is my new buddy and at least I could convince him to use the wheelchair instead of tiring himself out. We toured the Lincoln Memorial, the Vietnam Wall, and the Korean Memorial.

The Lincoln Memorial</h2

This is where I spent the most time; President Lincoln was one of Bill’s heroes when he was younger and he remembers the first time he came to D.C., standing in-front of the statue of Lincoln and the awe that he felt. We talked about the Civil Rights movement and how important it was to Bill that all people be treated with respect.

The Vietnam Wall

Here Bill and I did not really talk. It’s hard to think of words when you are staring at a wall covered in 50,000 names of the dead and the missing. I’ve been here three times now, and each time it hurts me in a way I cannot describe. This was Bill’s first time seeing the wall, and he told me he was “humbled.” He and I did okay until we got to the end and went to the memorial dedicated to the nurses. Bill wanted a close up because he said their faces were beautiful.

He got out of his chair and knelled next to one of them to get a picture of her face, and he started crying; “She looks so real.” A man who was just passing by ran over to help me get Bill back in the chair, and he saw his hat. He stood with us for quite awhile talking with Bill – he was another Marine. While they were talking so many people who stopped by the statue stopped to shake Bill’s hand and say “Thank You.”

The Korean Memorial

Here Bill and I took some time. A delegation from Korea was there, laying a wreath in memory of those who died and who were never found. I could not bring myself to take pictures of it because of how solemn the political officials were; they were accompanied by women dressed in what I recognized as the traditional clothing of Korean nuns. It was a small, beautiful ceremony.

At one end of the memorial is a small reflecting pool – Bill asked that I take pictures of each of the engravings. He appreciated the fact that it also honored the soldiers from other countries.

After a lovely picnic lunch we went to the Air and Space Museum. It was CROWDED but really interesting. Again, Bill and I were touring buddies and we viewed the exhibits set up in regards to WW I and WW II. We spent a lot of time in an exhibit related to Photo Reconnaissance, and since there were not a lot of people there we sat and talked for awhile. He told me about what the mindset was during the war and why he and his four brothers all enlisted. We talked about his family and his parents, and how they were proud that all five of their sons enlisted, and served in every branch of the military – and how the all came home. I told him his mother was a very brave woman, and he smiled and told me “Yes, she was – she prayed a lot and was scared for us, but she supported all of us. She was an amazing woman.”

Arlington National Cemetery

~Taken through bus windows~

Audie Murphy – Most Decorated Solider of WW II
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Our last stop of the day was Arlington. This was the place that got to most of the Vets. In it’s 200 acres, over 300,000 people are buried – not all of them soldiers. Staring at row up endless row of white marble markers, the bus was silent as we drove though to watch the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider.

We stood in a line along a space designated for wheel chairs, and it was silent as we watched the whole of the changing of the guard. Every thing in impeccable; the uniform, each step – everything has to be perfect. We were told by the park ranger (yes, it is also considered a National Park) that the only aspect of the changing the deviates is if there are Veterans along the wheelchair rail. The commanding officer when he leaves, as he walks past will drag his toe as a form of salute (as he cannot stop and salute the Vets, it would brake the form) – on the video you can hear it:

A group of us watched as three soldiers lowered and folded the flag.

It has been a long and tiring day, but it was amazing. All the vets had fun. Upon return to the hotel we had Mail Call – and it was amazing!

All the vets were excited and surprised – my mother and I had carried about 30lbs of Mail Call all the way from Oregon to hand out. Everyone had letters from someone, some from family and some from volunteers And I hope they write you if you sent me a letter to give them Also in their mail call was a Certificate my mother and I had printed out – Before we left we registered over Veteran on this trip in the World War II Memorial Registry; it lists their serve branch and dates, as well as their home town and where they served. Also we gave them a book called The Jewel of the Mall; a photographic history of the World War II Memorial. They loved it!