Learn how these veterans were recently honored

Jacob Conley / Special to The Star
·3 min read
Gary Gragg gives a thumbs up during a recent experience through Dream Flights.
Gary Gragg gives a thumbs up during a recent experience through Dream Flights.

Eight military veterans from Shelby’s Terra Bella Senior Living Community recently took to the skies from the Cleveland County Regional Airport.

The event was thanks to Dream Flights, a non-profit organization based in Carson City, Nevada, that takes veterans on 20-minute flights in a restored 1940 Stearman Boeing open-cockpit biplane, the same aircraft used to train aviators during World War II.

Pilots volunteer their time and are often military veterans themselves. The flight crew for the Shelby flight included pilot Darryl Smith and his wife, Mel.

According to Stacey Farmer, senior lifestyle counselor at Terra Bella, bringing Dream Flights to Shelby was a unique way to honor the veterans in the community.

“We were honored to be able to give our veteran residents the experience of a lifetime with a Dream Flight here in Shelby,” Farmer said. “It was a very special experience to be able to honor our veterans in this way and seeing the smiles on their faces when they landed after their flight was so rewarding.”

Dream Flights came to Shelby as part of a nationwide cross-country tour that began on April 1 and will run through February 2024. By the time the tour concludes, more than 1,000 veterans are expected to participate, with those serving in WWII given priority for flights.

“Dream Flights’ mission is giving back to those who gave,” Dream Flights’ founder Darryl Fisher said via email. “The Dream Flight experience is life-changing for seniors who, for many, believe the best years of their lives are behind them. We know this isn’t true. When a 90- or 100-year-old climbs into an open-cockpit biplane and soars 1,000 feet in the air, they’re feeling decades younger once they’re back on the ground. There’s a sparkle in their eye, a spring in their step, and a burst of energy they haven’t experienced in a long time. The experience is pure magic.”

Robert Cabaniss was one of eight veterans who recently took a ride thanks to Dream Flights.
Robert Cabaniss was one of eight veterans who recently took a ride thanks to Dream Flights.

National Guard veteran Tommy Bridges, 87, said the Dream Flights experience reminded him of his boyhood.

“I loved flying around with the open cockpit,” Bridges said. “I grew up flying Stearman Planes. They were the kind of planes my father had. It reminded me of my experiences as a little boy when I was 10 years old.”

The flight also brought back a sense of nostalgia for 91-year-old Roy Hankins.

“I really enjoyed remembering what it was like to fly again,” the Air Force veteran said. “It brought back many memories.”

Dream Flights was founded in 2011 and has given flights to over 6,000 veterans from 47 states. More than 1,500 of those veterans served in World War II with the oldest being 104 at the time of the flight. According to the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW), of the 16 million men and women who served in WWII, fewer than 100,000 were still living in 2021. In 2023, the youngest WWII veteran will be 97.

“This tour might be our country’s last chance to honor the Greatest Generation,” Fisher said.

Army veteran Robert Cabaniss, who is the oldest member of the group at 93, said he appreciated the experience and the mission.

“I was impressed to know of an organization that would do Honor Flights for veterans,” Cabaniss said. “The experience made me feel important and appreciated.”

Those veterans who participated in the flights include:

  • Roy Hankins, 91, Air Force

  • DeWitt Quinn, 73, Coast Guard

  • Jerome Hummell, 64, Army

  • Jack Kirby, 91, Navy

  • Gary Gragg, 85, Air Force

  • Tommy Bridges, 87, National Guard

  • Joe Roberts, 88, Air Force

  • Robert Cabaniss, 93, Army

This article originally appeared on The Shelby Star: Learn how these veterans were recently honored in Shelby