Toledo Ohio Airport

Honor Flights boost numbers

In the weeks leading up to Honor Flight of Northwest Ohio's trip to Washington Wednesday, eight of the 80 World War II veterans booked on the flight canceled for health reasons or -- in one case -- death.

"The window to get these guys to Washington, D.C., is closing rapidly," Honor Flight spokesman Jim Tichy said.

To get as many area World War II veterans to the nation's capital to see the memorial built in honor of their service, the Toledo-based Honor Flight chapter has gone from taking 25 veterans to Washington at a time to 80. Findlay-based Flag City Honor Flight plans to hold its inaugural flight June 8, also taking 80 veterans to see their memorial.

Vaun Wickerham, media and public relations coordinator for Flag City Honor Flight, said the youngest veterans on the flight are in their early 80s, and the oldest is 96. As in the Toledo chapter, one man who planned to make next month's trip died recently.

"It's a reality of what we're dealing with," Mr. Wickerham said.

Since Honor Flight launched its first flight from Toledo Express Airport in 2008, it has taken 542 veterans to Washington on 18 flights. Mr. Tichy said not only does the urgency increase each year, support for the program has as well.

"People in northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan have really been stepping up, and their generosity is coming through," Mr. Tichy said. "We have had organizations help us out. We've had tremendous support from individuals.

"The board figured that they could take the next step and charter a larger aircraft because the finances are there," he said.

Honor Flight took 80 veterans to Washington on its first flight of the year April 18. Eighty more will go Wednesday.

For Wednesday's flight, two churches -- Hope Baptist in Toledo and Cornerstone Baptist in Findlay -- joined to sponsor the trip financially and provide 25 volunteer guardians to accompany the veterans. Guardians -- one for every veteran on board -- pay their own way.

Cornerstone Pastor Walt Sheppard said church members donated some $12,500 in a single freewill offering.

"We were just so happy to help," Pastor Sheppard said. "We have a church that's heavily populated with veterans. We have Veterans Day every year; it's a huge thing. To us, we want our veterans to know we love them, we appreciate their sacrifice. We really do."

Jonathan Marshall, an assistant pastor at Hope Baptist, said his church also puts a big emphasis on veterans, holding a major Veterans Day steak dinner each November for about 200 Toledo area veterans.

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