Fulton Fire donates Soup Supper proceeds to Honor Flight former captain's memory
Feb. 24—FULTON, Ill. — Fulton Fire and EMS on Wednesday presented a $1,000 donation to representatives of Honor Flight of the Quad-Cities in memory of former Fulton Fire Department Captain Bob Buikema.
The amount of the donation was raised from free-will offerings collected at the fire department's Soup Supper held last month, an annual event that Buikema was greatly responsible for starting in the 1960s.
Robert "Bob" Buikema, 89, of Fulton, died in Morrison, Ill., on Dec. 28. Buikema had served in the U.S. Air Force from 1953 to 1957, and was involved many clubs, groups and organizations.
Honor Flight of the Quad-Cities has sent more than 6,000 military veterans from within a 90-mile radius to Washington, D.C., for one-day trips to, as Q-C chapter treasurer Rob Dammann says, "See your memorials in your honor."
The trip is at no cost to veterans but $400 per guardian to accompany them. The Q-C chapter of the organization formed in 2008 and operates only on donations and by the work of volunteers.
The next flight will be in April. Vietnam veterans are especially encouraged to apply at this time. Applications can be found online at honorflightqc.org
The remainder of the proceeds raised from the Soup Supper will go toward purchases of Fulton Fire and EMS equipment.
