Indy Honor Flight



Recently Professional Driver Nate Spainhower, of PECO Pallets Indy, was a part of the Indy Honor flight.  The Indy Honor Flight is a program which takes Veterans on a trip to visit their war memorials in Washington D.C.  Below is Nate’s story.

 

“I was lucky enough to be the guardian for two Korean veterans on a recent trip of the Indy Honor Flight. Mr. Joseph Benson U.S. Army transportation division, and Mr. Gordon Shepp U.S. Army engineer are the two gentlemen I was able to be a guardian for.  One of the pics below is Mr. Benson with Lieutenant General Joseph Anderson. At the time, neither of us knew, what a powerful and influential man Lieutenant General Anderson (google him) was. To us, he was just a soldier wanting to thank Mr. Benson for his service. You will also find a pic of Mr. Shepp with lip stick left on his cheeks after being welcomed home by two ladies dressed in the period attire of his deployment.

 

Being a part of the Indy Honor Flight has been one of the most fulfilling things I have been a part of.

Being able to not only accompany these men to Washington D.C., but to be part of a day where they truly get the respect and gratitude they deserve from the public at large as we walked the numerous monuments and memorials.  At times they were unsure and really taken back by the warmth and love they received, being thanked by current military, young children and pretty much every passerby.

 

I encourage anyone who is interested in this program to look them up online and get involved.

The Honor Flight program is 100% non-profit, and needs volunteers to do many tasks. To be a guardian it does cost $450 which covers the cost for 1 1/2 vets to be flown to Washington at no cost to the them.  For me this was a small price to pay to be able to help get these men and women to Washington D.C. to see the memorials that they have never seen, and may not have ever been able to do so.

There are chapters of the honor flight program all over the country.  A quick google search will find them in your area. If anyone is looking to understand this experience, there is a documentary film currently on Netflix called simply Honor Flight.”

 

Nate, thank you for your dedication to our veterans.