The World War II Memorial was dedicated on May 29^th of 2004, but this wonderful memorial cannot be shared with most WW II veterans here in Ohio. They are now in their 80s to 90s. The majority are on tiny, fixed incomes, lacking the finances and physical/mental stamina to complete a journey to Washington DC without our help.  A twelve-hour bus ride is not an option for these heroes.  According to Veterans Affairs statistics, about 1,200 WW II veterans die each and every day. The overwhelming majority of them will pass away without ever having an opportunity to visit the memorial they have waited over 60 years to see.  We want to change that.  We are now flying WW II veterans, one Saturday a month, in large commercial aircraft to the Washington, DC area.   The program is called Honor Flight and the purpose is to fly America’s elderly veterans to visit the memorials that have been dedicated to recognize their service and the sacrifices of their friends. We are a federal nonprofit (501c3) organization.

We are doing everything we can to make this activity FREE for the veterans.  Sadly, Honor Flight does not receive any corporate or government sponsorship. We are asking for donations to cover airfare, D.C. tour bus services, food, tee shirts, scooter rental and operational costs. We’re hoping that, by getting the word out, public support will continue to grow.  The more support we receive, the more veterans finally get to visit their memorial. Over the past two years, we have transported a total of 463 members of “the Greatest Generation.” We are now joined by other programs in North Carolina, Utah, Michigan, Indiana, Oklahoma, Colorado and Illinois. Next year, our combined goal is to fly over 5000 WW II Veterans.

Time is NOT on our side.  Since early January 2005, thirty-seven World War II veterans on our waiting list have passed away without visiting their memorial.  In another 3 to 7 years, almost all WW II veterans will be gone.  We remain committed to do everything we can to help those surviving veterans view their precious memorial.  They are ordinary men and women who collectively and literally saved America and the world. If you would like more information or would like to help, please visit our web site at www.HonorFlight.org, email me at HonorFlight@aol.com or call (937) 864-7261.

Erwin (Earl) Morse, Captain, USAF Retired

Founder of Honor Flight, Inc.

P.O. Box 214

Enon, OH 45323

Phone: 937 864-7261

DETAILS:

The following is a tentative time line for most flights. Departure cities and airline schedules will vary:

8:00 to 9:40 AM – Assemble, board aircraft at the airport.

9:40 to 10:30 AM – Fly to Baltimore-Washington International (BWI) Airport

10:30 to 11:00 AM – Bathroom break, load tour bus to Washington, D.C.

11:00 to 11:45 AM – Drive to downtown D.C.

11:45 to 2:15 PM – Tour the WWII Memorial, eat box lunches

2:15 to 3:30 PM – Tour Korean, Vietnam and Lincoln Memorials

3:30 to 4:30 PM – Drive past Iwo Jima Memorial and back to BWI

4:30 to 5:40 PM – Afternoon snack, fellowship, board aircraft.

5:40 to 6:50 PM – Flight back.

Financial Donations of:

$10 – feeds two veterans for the entire day.

$200 – sponsors one veteran for the entire trip.

$342 – pays our insurance for one year.

$1150 – funds the DC tour bus.

$8,000 – sponsors one flight of 40 WWII Veterans

$64,000 – sponsors Honor Flight in one city for an entire year.

TENTATIVE HONOR FLIGHT SCHEDULE FOR 2007:

For simplicity purposes, we have decided to make our Honor Flight trips on the first Saturday of every month. Some exceptions to this general policy are made to avoid “high traffic days” in Washington DC, (i.e. major events in Washington DC and holiday weekends). Specific exceptions are noted below. Our flying schedule has been coordinated with the Washington DC Park Service. The average high temperature in Washington DC for the scheduled dates is listed below.

April 21, 2007 - The first two Saturdays of April are very busy due to the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Park Service has informed us that numerous roads in the area of the memorials will be blocked due to parades and traffic will be rerouted. Average high for this date is 68 degrees.

May 5, 2007 - Average high for this date is 72 degrees.

June 2, 2007- Average high for this date is 81 degrees.

July 7, 2007- Average high for this date is 89 degrees.

August 4, 2007- Average high for this date is 89 degrees.

September 8, 2007 – The first Saturday of the month is Labor Day Weekend. Average high for this date is 83 degrees.

October 13, 2007 – The first Saturday of the month is Columbus Day Weekend. Average high for this date is 70 degrees.

November 3, 2007 - Average high for this date is 62 degrees.

Contact information:

Email – HonorFlight@aol.com

Web site – www.HonorFlight.org

FAX – 1 937 864-0524

Phone – 1 937 864-7261