Honor Flight Sends Veterans To Washington D.C.

Cape Girardeau, Mo. (WSIL) -- A group of veterans will embark on a once-in-a-lifetime trip to visit monuments and memorials dedicated to their service for an honor flight. 50 veterans, accompanied by their guardians, will embark on a special journey flying straight to Washington D.C.

The VFW Post 38-38 partnered with The Wake Foundation to host the honor flight at the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport this morning.

These veterans from various branches of the military were greeted by a large cheering crowd with waving American flags. They are set to experience a unique trip to visit landmarks and memorials. Some of those include access to inside the white house and visiting the tomb of the unknown soldier.

Army veteran, James Waynick, tells us he is looking forward to experiencing the history of the Capital alongside his wife for the very first time.

"All of the monuments, the, you know, there's not just military stuff there there's Martin Luther King, our president that got assassinated back in the 60's you know, John F. Kennedy, he's there. There's just a lot of history in that town...a lot of history," says Waynick.

James Haney is a Marine Corps Veteran, serving for 30 years. He says he opted out of the honor flight this time around but traveled from Chaffee to honor his fellow veterans. He even unexpectedly reunited with a comrade from their time during the Cuban missile crisis.

"We appreciate so much the people who have put all of this together they have really went beyond, beyond our imagination, all of our, all of the people that have turned out for this today, did you see the hundreds of people that we have here? At least a hundred," says Haney.

Founder of The Wake Foundation, Robert Wake, says they have an exciting day filled with back-to-back stops lined up for these veterans to experience.

"You know there's some things like the White House that's gonna be different for them. But when they go to their memorial, and they see some of their friends, the impact, you see it instantly. You see it on their faces, you see it in their attitudes. And it is a healing process," says Wake.

Organizers say the goal of this trip is to provide veterans a day just for them, giving them the opportunity to heal and reflect on their service with this once-in-a-lifetime trip.