Saturday was a big day for some Veterans out of the Twin Cities. One hundred men and woman from WWII traveled to Washington DC for one day to visit their memorial. This memorial was only dedicated in 2004, and with 1000 WWII veterans dying each day, it was urgent that the remaining veterans get the opportunity to experience the gratitude of the nation. The honor was all mine, as I got the pleasure of travel with them.
The morning starts at five greeting our men and women at the airport and then we are off and running, not an easy feat with most in their late 80's and 90's. The organization is incredible. One hundred vets, 60 guardians and 70 wheelchairs is not an easy task to transport anywhere, but we managed to visit seven monuments or memorials, with a bus tour of DC as well.
The gentlemen in my care were two Navy veterans who have been friends for over seventy years. John joined the Navy right after school at 17, while Jack waited to be drafted. They then went on to raise families always remaining friends. Neither saw combat and I was told they felt guilty about that for a long time, but they came to the realization that they went where they were told to do their duty. They still did their part. They were funny and quick to get the jabs in with each other, I was fair game as well. I sometimes wondered who was watching out for whom? We made a great team.
It was my first trip to Washington DC. Asked what I liked the best about it I struggled to answer, the memorials are so different from each other. The iconic Iwo Jima holds a special place in my heart, the Air Force spears are beautiful, the Korean and Vietnam walls are haunting and sobering and the WWII memorial was grand and experiencing it with some of our finest was so special. So my answer was that, I couldn't imagine a greater first time trip to DC than to travel with some of our greatest generation and experience it through their eyes.
No comments:
Post a Comment