REQUEST FOR ASSISTANCE

Ellis County Honor Flight was originally established to honor our World War II Veterans in Ellis County by escorting them to Washington DC to visit their Memorial. With the overwhelming response received from many Ellis County residents asking about veterans from other areas, who were friends or relatives, we were able to expand our efforts to include veterans with an ”Ellis County Connection”. Every veteran that has made an Honor Flight shares that experience with friends and that has generated interest from a much wider area than originally anticipated. With the word getting out we are asking for financial support from those areas to make it possible to continue to offer this opportunity to not only Ellis County veterans but those from our neighboring area.

ATHENS, TEXAS VOLUNTEERS HAVE JOINED ELLIS COUNTY HONOR FLIGHT TO IDENTIFY AND HONOR THE WWII VETERANS IN EAST TEXAS

Honor Flight of East Texas

The folks in Athens, Texas, have asked for assistance in possibly forming an East Texas Honor Flight hub. In the interim, the volunteers in Henderson County have identified WWII veterans interested in making the trip with Ellis County and are gathering donations to put toward the travel expenses. We look forward to meeting and honoring the WWII veterans from East Texas and will assist the volunteers however we can.

Ellis County Honor Flight
May 5-6, 2009

We have been back from our second trip to Washington DC for more than a month now and the rewards from the trip just keep pouring in. We were blessed by the benefit of escorts to the airport from our Ellis County Sheriff, the Waxahachie Police Department, and an overpass salute from the Red Oak Police Department; we were then joined by members of the Dallas County Sheriff’s office.

In addition, there were 40+ motorcycles from the Blue Knights and the Patriot Guard Riders making up the motorcade to Dallas Love Field. Breakfast was provided by Chick-Fil-A and What-a-burger during our ride to the airport.

Upon arrival at the airport the Blue Knights and Patriot Guard along with an entourage of Southwest Airline and Love Field employees took charge of our baggage and helped the veterans get to the security checkpoint. Once through security we were greeted like royalty at the gate by another group of SWA and Love Field employees and allowed to board first. Once onboard, seated, and ready to push back from the gate the Dallas Police Honor Guard marched onto the plane and down the aisle for a flag salute.

After a four hour flight to Baltimore and a fire truck water cannon salute at the arrival gate the captain asked that the veteran’s and guardians be allowed to deplane first. In the arrival terminal the veterans were met by some 200 people waving flags and cheering, there were balloons, handshakes, hugs and military band music playing the themes from every branch of service with some great 40’s music thrown in for good measure. We were assisted through the airport by a number of Honor Flight volunteers who provided help with the baggage and cold water for those that needed it. A box lunch was delivered to the bus for our convenience during the ride to the WWII Memorial.

The WWII Memorial and the whole National Mall with its other memorials is awe inspiring in and unto itself. The reception and the thanks the veterans receive from the public, young and old alike, will without a doubt bring tears to the eyes of all the folks there. We were met by a lone bagpiper and treated to many WWII era musical numbers that drew a very large crowd at the east side of the Memorial. The veterans were literally swamped by groups of school children of all ages as well as adults that wanted to thank them for their service and have their pictures taken with the heroes of “The Greatest Generation”.

After touring the memorials at the National Mall we departed for Arlington National Cemetery to see the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It was overcast and drizzling rain during the Changing of the Guard ceremony. Though the weather did not cooperate it put a whole different perspective on the duty these young men perform, rain or shine, to honor and hold in absolute reverence the sacrifices of our soldiers and veterans in pursuit of Liberty and the American way of life. After a driving tour of Arlington National Cemetery we were treated to a guided tour of some of the points of interest in our nation’s capital, by our bus driver, on the way to our hotel.

Our dinner was in the old historic Greyhound Bus Terminal building in downtown DC which had been remodeled into a very well known restaurant. There were many stories exchanged and friendships forged during the first day of our trip but especially over a great meal and conversations that took many of the veterans back to the days of their youth. There was a Mail Call with letters from school students from Ellis County to each of the veterans, by name with their thanks. After dinner we retired to the hotel for a well deserved rest after a long and memorable day of reflection.

The next morning we had breakfast at the hotel, checked out and boarded the bus for the Nation’s Capital where we were hosted by Congressman Joe Barton in the chamber of the Energy and Commerce Committee where he was previously the chairman and still sits on that committee today. Congressman Barton gave us an update on what has transpired in that committee since our new president was elected and then took questions from the veterans. After the question and answer session the congressman took the opportunity to come and talk with the veterans individually and have pictures made with them. Time was getting short and Congressman Barton arranged for our lunch to be delivered to the chamber where we were; we avoided having to leave the building and go through security again for our scheduled tour of the Capital building.

We had a scheduled meeting with Congressman Chet Edwards, from the Waco area, prior to our capital tour and as luck would have it, Congressman Edwards was in a Subcommittee meeting for Military Construction and Veteran’s Affairs of the House Appropriations Committee just two doors down the hall from where we were having lunch. Through one of his staff members he agreed to come and visit with us while we finished our lunch; to our delight and amazement he was accompanied by the Chief of Staff of the Army, General George Casey and two of the general’s staff members. Both Congressman Edwards and General Casey were very gracious in their talk with the veterans, they too answered questions and greeted and had pictures made with the veterans. It was without a doubt one of the highlights of our visit to Washington.

After our visit with the congressmen and the general, the staff members escorted us to the subbasement of the Rayburn building where we were allowed to take the Senate Subway to the Capital and avoided a long walk and another trip through another very rigorous security check.

After our Capital tour we boarded the bus and made a quick stop at the Iwo Jima Memorial before heading for the airport. The Honor Flight volunteers were at the airport again to assist us in getting bags checked through security for our trip home. On the final leg of our flight we had a roll call and presented all of our veterans with a WWII Veterans lapel/hat pin with the thanks of a grateful nation. Both our pilot and copilot on our return trip were retired military aviators and they insisted on greeting and having their pictures made with the veterans upon our arrival back in Dallas. The pilot and copilot were both presented with an Ellis County Honor Flight cap which they said they would wear with honor. The Ellis County Sheriff and his wife and the constable from precinct four were at the airport to escort us back to Waxahachie along with numerous members of the Blue Knights and Patriot Guard Riders. Due to a traffic accident on southbound IH35 we were forced to detour down Highway 67 through Midlothian where we were joined by several members of the Midlothian P/D to escort us through town.

All in all it was an outstanding trip and we are already getting applications for the next trip. With God’s blessings and the help of a grateful public we will be making another trip this year in the September/October timeframe. If you are a WWII veteran and would like to go to Washington with us or if would like to help us continue to make these trips possible please contact me.

Ron Langenheder
ron.langenheder@att.net
Ellis County Honor Flight
http://www.elliscountyhonorflight.org
Home) 972/617-2574
Cell) 214/957-8341

Time is of the Essence.

Based on recent 2008 statistics, we are losing World War II veterans at the rate of approximately 1,000 per day. Honor Flight Network will continue do whatever it takes to fulfill the dreams of our veterans and help our senior heroes travel absolutely free.
Subsequent to the World War II veterans, our efforts will then focus on our Korean War and then Vietnam War veterans, honoring them similarly.

The History of Honor Flight

The inaugural Honor Flight took place in May of 2005. Six small planes flew out of Springfield, Ohio taking twelve World War II veterans on a visit to the memorial in Washington, DC. In August of 2005, an ever-expanding waiting list of veterans led our transition to commercial airline carriers with the goal of accommodating as many veterans as possible. Partnering with HonorAir in Hendersonville, North Carolina, we formed the "Honor Flight Network." Today, we continue working aggressively to expand our programs to other cities across the nation.

 

 

Web Hosting provided by: