La Crosse-based Freedom Honor Flight, which serves veterans in western Wisconsin, southeast Minnesota and northern Iowa, continues its goal to fly veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the memorials that rise in their honor. Over 11 years of operation, Freedom Honor Flight has flown just shy of 3,000 area veterans.
The next flight is scheduled for September 14 and will carry one WWII, 18 Korean and 76 Vietnam veterans. Five of the veterans have received Purple Hearts—including two who each have two Purple Hearts—and seven veterans on the flight have Bronze Stars.
Morning send off
A send-off ceremony will be held at 6 a.m. at Colgan Air Hangar 4, La Crosse Regional Airport.
Welcome home ceremony
Freedom Honor Flight will be departing Washington D.C. around 9:30 p.m. EST. Celebrating the veterans’ return, a welcome home ceremony will be held at Colgan Air Hangar 4. Hangar doors open at 9 p.m.
Family, friends, supporters and the public are invited to the morning and evening celebrations. There is no charge for the events and parking is free.
While in Washington, D.C.
The first stop will be the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial and Lincoln Memorial, followed by the World War II Memorial. Veterans, guardians and medical crew will then visit Arlington National Cemetery. Before departing from Reagan National Airport in Washington D.C., veterans will have a chance to view the sunset from the Pentagon.
About Freedom Honor Flight, Inc.
Freedom Honor Flight is the first Wisconsin affiliate of the national network of Honor Flight organizations. The hub, which is based in La Crosse, serves 25 counties in western Wisconsin, southeast Minnesota and northern Iowa. The group’s mission is to organize and fly groups of veterans to Washington D.C. to visit the war memorials that stand in their honor. The group receives no government funding and depends on donations, which are tax deductible to the full extent of the law. Learn more at http://www.freedomhonorflight.org.
For more information, please visit freedomhonorflight.org or contact:
Dave Larsen
608-317-8212
Bill Hoel
608-785-2880
Kathy Van Kirk
608-780-1256