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Honor Flight Rochester Celebrates its Milestone 50th Mission Sunday
Veterans from WWII, Korean War, Cold War and the Vietnam War Fly Oct. 1-2
Honor Flight Rochester (HFR) has come a long way since its first mission in Oct. 2008. On Sunday, Oct. 2, HFR will welcome home 43 veterans from the Greater Rochester area as part of Mission 50. In eight years, HFR has flown 2,351 veterans to Washington, D.C.
Among the ranks of the 43 veterans on the Mission 50 roster are four who served in more than one era:
28 Korean War
11 World War II
2 Cold War / Vietnam War
1 World War II / Korean War
1 Korean War / Cold War / Vietnam War
These veterans served in the U.S. Navy (16), the U.S. Army (16), the U.S. Air Force (7), the U.S. Marine Corps (2), and the U.S. Army Air Corps (2).
For this special mission, HFR has invited back two very special veterans who supported HFR from its very earliest days, Tom Hope and Norm Bachman. Preceding the founding of HFR, Hope flew on a Lone Eagle flight in April 2008, while Bachman flew his Honor Flight out of Buffalo. Hope’s son, Vince, is a co-founder and past president of HFR. Bachman started the tradition of the enthusiastic HFR Welcome Home celebrations. He would bring two dozen of his family members, including his son, John, who will accompany him at the Mission 50 Welcome Home.
Marion Mench, a longtime HFR volunteer and wife of the late Edwin “Woody” Mench, a co-founder of HFR, will fly as a special emissary on Mission 50, along with members of the HFR Board of Directors and Leadership team, who will be part of the traveling volunteer team.
The keynote speakers for Sunday’s Welcome Home will be three of the founding members of HFR: Peter Glennon, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Co-Founder and Legal Counsel, and Jeff and Kim Gould, Co-Founders. Jeff also serves on the Board of Directors.
The two-day HFR trip to Washington D.C. to visit the nation’s memorials is free to all honored veterans. Flights are possible through community gifts and contributions. Veterans are encouraged to register for their honor flight at honorflightrochester.com. Paper applications are also available.
One more mission (51) is planned for this year on Oct. 22-23.
DEPARTURE DATE: Saturday, October 1, 2016.
Arrive at Rochester Airport no later than 4 am.
DEPARTURE FLIGHT: Southwest Airlines Flight #783
RETURN DATE: Sunday, October 2, 2016
RETURN FLIGHT: Southwest Airlines Flight #324
RETURN FLIGHT ARRIVAL TIME: 11:25 am.
DATE: Sunday, Oct. 2, 2016
PUBLIC WELCOME CELEBRATION: Approximately 11:55 a.m. after all veterans have deboarded the plan
FLIGHT: Southwest Airlines Flight #324
SCHEDULE FLIGHT ARRIVAL TIME: 11:25 a.m.
WHERE: Greater Rochester International Airport
EMCEE: Don Alhart, 13WHAM TV News Anchor
KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: Peter Glennon, Jeff and Kim Gould
COLOR GUARD: Lady Liberties
MUSIC: Fairport FD Band
HONOR GUARD: Patriot Guard Riders (pgrny.org).
DEPARTURE: Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016 – Honor Flight Rochester Mission 50 departs the Greater Rochester International Airport at 6:00 a.m. The veterans and their guardians begin arriving at 4 a.m.
Honor Flight Rochester (www.honorflightrochester.org) – one of 135 established hubs in 42 states the national Honor Flight Network – is a not-for-profit, fully-volunteer organization with a goal of taking every World War II, Korean War, or Vietnam War veteran from the Greater Rochester area who otherwise would or could not go, to visit and reflect together at Washington D.C. Memorials built in their honor. The two-day HFR trip is free to all World War II, Korean War, Vietnam War, and veterans who served during the years 1947 – 1964 (“Cold War”). It’s also open to veterans of any era who suffer a catastrophic illness. Rochester’s flying season is April to October. To date, 2,351 veterans have now flown from the Greater Rochester area since the local organization began full-scale flights in early 2009.
View our past Mission photos at: www.honorflightrochester.shutterfly.com
