Freedom is a loaded word. Complex by nature, we often skim over its true meaning, mindlessly repeating “home of the free” without a second thought. However, when we ponder the word more, we have to wonder: By what right do we possess freedom? How did this freedom come to be? What is freedom and what are its limitations? And, most importantly, whom do we owe for the preservation this freedom?
Though we can say that our founding fathers outlined the freedoms we have today in our Constitution, it is truly the current and former soldiers, alive and deceased, of our country who have protected that which we hold most dear. Our laws give us the concepts and legal framework for our freedoms, but without our soldiers to fight to protect our country, those freedoms could well have been lost to foreign adversaries. Never were our freedoms more at jeopardy in modern times than in World War II when totalitarian states sought to overthrow countries that were democratic and guaranteed personal freedom. At that time millions came forward to serve in our armed services to fight these enemies. Their service and sacrifice proved to be the ultimate guarantor of these liberties. Our gratitude to our veterans for allowing us the freedom to make countless decisions and realize so many opportunities should be boundless.
Gratitude is exactly what the Honor Flight program aims to express to WWII veterans. The program was started in May of 2005, and it aims to fly WWII veterans to Washington D.C. for free for one day in order to see the WWII memorial.
The day starts early for the veterans. Many are on the waiting list for quite some time, and are so excited about the day that, according to Rolando Lopez, an organizer of the program in St. Louis, “[some of them] don’t sleep the day before because they’re so anxious to get on the flight.” By 4 A.M., 20 to 25 veterans will have arrived at St. Louis International Airport in order to meet their Guardians.
Each veteran has a Guardian on the trip for safety reasons and to assist them. Sometimes the Guardian is a family member, but others are simply volunteers. The Guardians have to pay $550 for the trip, but according to Board member and Guardian volunteer Jeff Battram, the experience is completely worth it.
“The stories you hear these veterans talk about, the excitement in their voice and the gratitude they have for the day’s experience, and the way they thank us for honoring them–it just is an amazing experience,” Battram said. “So that’s how I got involved, and once I did I got hooked on it.”
Once the veterans are acquainted with their Guardians, receive their free shirts and hats and eat breakfast, they are whisked on a plane to Washington D.C. In the case of WWII veteran Philip Goldsticker, who went on an Honor Flight in September of 2011, his plane actually went to the Baltimore area. However, for him, it was the experience he had at the airport that was unforgettable.
“When we got off the plane in Baltimore, there were several hundred people there waving flags and cheering and thanking us for our service,” Goldsticker said. “[It] really brought tears to my eyes– it was a great reception.”
Goldsticker was 20 years old when he joined the air force on July 6, 1942. After initially wanting to be a pilot, he ended up being the bombardier in a B-17. He flew 35 missions altogether over France and Germany, two of which were during D-Day, a day during which he flew an astonishing fourteen and a half hours.
Goldsticker described viewing the memorials as very moving. The crew visited the WWII Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorials and the “Changing of the Guard” at Arlington National Cemetery. After a long day of seeing sites, the veterans return on a plane to St. Louis. On the plane, they receive a package of brown envelopes from people thanking them for their service.
“[There] were letters from my three sons and daughter in laws and five grandchildren, two nieces and three cousins,” Goldsticker said. “That really still brings tears to my eyes and that was one of the highlights, really.”
Upon returning to St. Louis, they are greeted by a wonderful reception. When the veterans get off the plane, Goldsticker recalls how there was an Honor Guard of sixteen people in the service from various branches, and they escorted the veterans to the lobby, where there were hundreds of people. Relatives and friends of the veterans with flags crowded the lobby of Lambert as there was a ceremony for the veterans, in which they were awarded a book, plaque, and several other medals to close up the day.
“It was a long, long day—it went from about three in the morning to about ten at night, but was a wonderful night and I was honored to be able to do it,” Goldsticker said.
Battram said that the trip is especially touching since many veterans weren’t honored properly when they came back from the war.
“Most of these guys in WWII, when they left the service, they came home to no fanfare, no thank you’s– when their number came up they were put on a boat or whatever and came home,” Battram said. “Some of them went to work the next day. So it’s amazing to find these veterans who will tell you that they never spoke about their experiences there and they can’t wait to go home and talk to their families about what they went through. I had one veteran at the end of the flight, I asked him, ‘so did you enjoy the day?’ And his response to me was, ‘you know, up until today I only thought of myself as a guy who had been in the service. But after today, I feel proud.’ And that’s the kind of stuff that makes you want to keep going back and helping out.”
Lopez agreed with Battram that the time was truly incredible.
“We’ve heard a lot from the family members, and it allows them just to talk about the war… they just don’t speak of those times in their service at all until they go on this flight,” Lopez said. “If there’s a family member with them they just open up and they just start talking about their experiences there, and so it’s a really emotional day for the veteran, it’s cleansing, if you will– they’re able to finally open up and share with a family member and able to reconnect with the veterans [they]’re with.”
As it’s estimated that about 700 WWII veterans die per day, the Honor Flight is trying to reach as many veterans as possible in an effort to help them see their memorial. The significance of the trip is not lost on those that are lucky enough to get the opportunity to make it to D.C.
“I get phone calls from a lot of the widows saying, ‘I just wanted to let you know Harry passed away, but on his deathbed he spoke about just how wonderful his experience was with the Honor Flight,’” Battram said. “Some of these guys are able to reconnect with old friends, make new friends when they meet veterans on the trip they go on, and then they get in touch, so there’s benefits all around other than just honoring these guys–they build relationships along the way.”
Overall, the Honor Flight program has had a huge role in helping commemorate the great service of WWII veterans, as well as building bonds and special memories for family members. The program works solely off of donations. In the process of fundraising, the Greater St. Louis Honor Flight will be hosting a viewing of “Honor Flight—A Freethink Film” on April 6 at 6 p.m. at the Skip Viragh Center for the Arts on the Chaminade High School Campus. The tickets are $100, and cover the cost of the ticket, hor d’oeuvres and cocktails. The program is also looking for volunteers to help out at the reception, and those 18 and over can apply to be a Guardian.
The trip is a very memorable experience for all who are involved, but most importantly, it’s special for the ones who sacrificed to protect our treasured freedoms at a critical time in our history—our World War II veterans.