I will be a Guardian on the upcoming Villages Honor Flight on September 8th, 2013. Honor Flight is a National Organization that was founded to honor the veterans of World War II. Without these men and women, we would live in a materially different world today. The Founders of Honor Flight discovered that many WWII veterans had never been to Washington, DC . The magnificent World War III Memorial is on the Mall. The organization decided to start sponsoring “Honor Flights” into Washington so these Vets would have a chance to see the Memorial dedicated to them.

Our Honor Flight will be an “All Marine Guardian Flight” which will be a first A Guardian is an individual who is responsible for the WWII Vet for the entire time. Vets don’t pay a cent. Guardians pay up to $400 for their flight.
We leave The Villages for Orlando International at 3:00 AM. The flight leaves about 7:00 AM for Baltimore. We arrive there about 9:30 and are bussed down to Washington with a National Park Service escort. When we arrive, we visit the World War II Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, The Iwo Jima Memorial, Korrea and Vietnam Memorials, Lincoln Memorial, etc. At 5:00, we are on the busses back to Baltimore with an arrival back in the Villages at aprox. 12:30 AM. It will be a LONG day but very fulfilling.

Our flight will take approx 25 WWII Veterans from the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Army Air Corps. Each Vet has a guardian. We are organized into 5 “squads” of 5 Vets to a squad. I am tasked with being a Squad Leader in charge of 5 teams of Guardians/Vets. We also have a Flight Director, Tour Guide, Medical Personnel (including a Corpsman for each squad), and a Photographer.

The planning that goes into this endeavor is incredibly meticulous, detailed, and rehearsed. We have already met with our Vets. My Vet is J. Rosseau who was a UDT specialist which were the forerunners of the Navy Seals. Basically, his job was to remove obstacles from beaches so the Marines could land. He is 87, feisty, and quick. He loves the fact that a Field Grade Marine Officer is going to be wheeling him around DC. He REALLY loves that part. We bonded very quickly.

The World War II generation is dying at the rate of 800-900 per day. We are losing them quickly. Each of our Vets has never been able to get to Washington and is grateful for the opportunity. We who are Guardians are privileged to be able to help them make this journey.

After September 8th, I will post a follow-on to describe out adventure!