Quincy On Thursday, about twenty Veterans assembled at John Wood Community College shortly after midnight.
Following a hearty breakfast provided by American Red Cross volunteers, the Veterans engaged in conversation among themselves as their traveling companions, known as guardians, were given final instructions for the Great River Honor Fight, which would be mission number 77.
2,477 Veterans have toured the US Capitol and seen the monuments dedicated to them throughout the Great River Honor Flight’s 16-year history.
According to Flight Captain Barry Cheyne, the unique aspect of this trip is that it is exclusively for Adams County Veterans. On this mission, 29 Veterans are participating. Especially in honor of the bicentennial of Adams County. Therefore, we are pleased to do both while also honoring Veterans and making their day memorable, which is what we will do.
John Sass, a Quincy Veterans Home resident and a Navy veteran, served two tours in Vietnam. However, it was during his time in Okinawa that the aviation radar tech gained notoriety. with the Pacific Ocean, his squadron assisted with the recovery of the Gemini 8 spacecraft.
“I found it,” he remembered. I was twenty years old. powerful like an ox. I connected the capsule to the cord. It was topped with a hook. I then unlocked the hatch.
Neil Armstrong was one of the astronauts to come out, according to Sass. Armstrong would set foot on the moon three years later in March 1966. Armstrong and Sass remained in contact until his death in 2012.
Another once-in-a-lifetime experience for Sass is traveling to Washington, D.C., with his daughter at his side.
Simply said, I’m glad she’s here. This is really captivating her!
John Bange, a veteran of the Marine Corps, is also accompanied by his daughter. Bange hasn’t flown in years, and this is her first time. The effects of a 1984 helicopter disaster that occurred during training exercises in Korea are still felt today.
He recalled that they removed five Marines from the flight in order to bring five Korean Marines on board. I was the one they took off, by chance.
However, John Rooney, a friend of Bange’s from Keokuk, Iowa, continued to accompany him. When the CH-53D Sea Stallion crashed into a mountain, he was among the 29 South Korean and American Marines who lost their lives.
Bange currently has a tattoo of Rooney’s likeness on his arm. Bange remarked of the design, “He’s waiting for me at the pearly gates.”
As her father talked about the fallout and the unique support group that has helped him over the years, daughter Ashley Weekley reached over to take his hand. During this hectic journey, both will encourage one another, and it is anticipated that they will return to JWCC at approximately 10:30 p.m.
“Being with him on this incredible journey means the world to me,” Weekley told Muddy River News.
Tom Leeper, a former Adams County state’s attorney and Air Force veteran, brought his son Jeff, a Marine Corps veteran, with him. Leeper’s father was a Navy veteran as well. For Leeper, a life of service comes down to a few fundamental ideas. pride in our nation. ready to help. Freedom isn’t free.
