Mike Berry column: With Honor Flight, Henry County veterans received the honor they deserve
For the 88 Vietnam-era veterans from the Kewanee area who went on the Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., the reception they got was much different from when they returned from Vietnam more than half a century ago.
If you’re as old as I am, you remember that the Vietnam War was very unpopular with many people in America. And some very misguided people took their anti-war anger out on the soldiers when they came back from the war.
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More than one veteran on the Honor Flight trip recalled being told by an officer to wear civilian clothes when they got off the plane in the U.S. If they were in uniform, someone might recognize who they were and where they were coming from, and a dangerous situation might develop.
Maybe it was the 9-11 experience, or the Iraq War or the Gulf War or Afghanistan, but events since our involvement in Vietnam have changed our attitudes toward service members, in a very good way.
When the Honor Flight veterans arrived at Dulles International Airport and started through the terminal, they were greeted by school kids and adults, singing patriotic songs, waving American flags and thanking them for their service. I was told that every Honor Flight from across the country gets the same treatment.
When their flight arrived back at the Quad Cities International Airport at the end of a long day, the veterans had to walk down a long corridor to get to the exit. The corridor was lined with hundreds of people — late at night. Every one of those people clapped and cheered, and shook hands with the veterans and wished them well.
I heard the words, “Thank you for your service,” more times than I could count on that day.
A few people even thanked me for going along and covering the event for the Star Courier.
More: Vets from Kewanee, Geneseo, Galva, Knox and Henry counties made the recent Honor Flight
I was a little hesitant about accepting Jason Bates’ invitation to go on the Honor Flight. I didn’t serve in the military, and I expected that some of the people who did would resent seeing someone like me ride with them on their special day.
As it turned out, no one even asked me about my past. If anyone had, I’m sure they wouldn’t have had any problem with it.
I also noted that none of the veterans seemed to have any sort of negative attitude toward their experiences in the service. The only thing I heard that could be even remotely considered a negative remark was at the Dulles terminal as we waited for the plane to board for the return flight. There was a delay, and the veteran sitting next to me said, “Just like in the Army. . .hurry up and wait!”
Mostly what I heard was veterans asking each other where they had been stationed in Vietnam, and what job they had there. Jason told me that the veterans had seen a variety of duties. . .some had support roles while others were in the most intense combat. But all seemed grateful to be going on the trip.
Honor Flight is available to World War II, Korean War (four veterans of that war were on our flight) and Vietnam War veterans. The trip is free to the veterans. More information on the program is available at honorflightqc.org
This article originally appeared on Star Courier: Mike Berry: With Honor Flight, Henry Co. vets given honor they deserve
