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Local Support Will Fly Rochester’s First “Honor Flight”

Thursday, August 14th, 2008

Contact: Vince Hope, Vice President
Honor Flight Rochester, Inc.
[email protected]

WWII Veterans to Visit their Memorial in Washington D.C.

Honor Flight Rochester, New YorkRochester, New York. In twelve short weeks dreams have become reality. On Memorial Day 2008 a public appeal was first heard for Rochester to join “Honor Flight” – the national movement to fly our country’s oldest veterans to visit their WWII Memorial on the Mall in Washington, D.C. Just prior to July 4th a group of volunteers announced the formation of Honor Flight Rochester, with the goal of taking hundreds, rather than handfuls, of local veterans to see the memorial built in 2004 to honor their heroism.

Today, founding board members announce Rochester’s inaugural Honor Flight will be scheduled to fly from Monroe County International Airport on Oct. 18, 2008. “With only our grass roots efforts, public donations and support now allow us to schedule a first flight of 10 area veterans this fall,” announced President Kathleen Wall. “We would love to fly 20 or 25 of our heroes on this first excursion as we get our organization off the ground. But to do that, we would need additional and immediate funds. All of our honored veterans travel free.”

Honor Flight Rochester, New YorkSupport of $450 for one veteran covers round trip airfare, a day-long bus excursion to all the major memorials – WWII, Viet Nam, Korea, the Marine’s Iwo Jima, and the newest Air Force memorial – hotel accommodations for a Saturday night, all meals, and the necessary support service to ensure a safe and healthy trip for men and women aged 82 and older. Each honored veteran will be accompanied by an able-bodied Guardian, who contributes to his or her own travel expenses.

“The national President of Honor Flight has expressed interest in joining us on this inaugural flight, and with local media as well, our entourage for 10 veterans and 10 guardians involves planning for 25 people,” explained Wall. “But we are eager to take up to 50 people on this maiden trip. Our highest priority is once-in-a-lifetime experience for as many veterans as possible, before tackling the larger challenges that lie ahead.”

Those larger challenges involve planning for more than 200 area veterans who have registered for flights in the 8 weeks since the organization went live with its website at www.HonorFlightRochester.org. Guardian applications from the website now number more than 75. Those numbers grow daily, and organizers believe registrations will climb steeply again with a first successful trip this fall.

Honor Flight Rochester, New YorkPlans call for ambitious Honor Flights beginning next spring, when the national program begins its 2009 flying season in April. “We plan this winter to expand our fund raising efforts and local partnerships to ramp up processes and fill hundreds of Honor Flight seats in 2009,” said Wall.

She urges the public to visit their website and welcomes new applications from other area veterans, inquiries from volunteers – both as Guardian travelers and those with skills and interest to help build the organization – but especially welcomed are private donations, of any size.

Pledges are accepted on the website but contributions may be sent directly to Honor Flight Rochester, Inc., P.O. Box 23581, Rochester, NY 14693.

Honor Flight Announces Rochester Hub Formation

Thursday, June 19th, 2008

Contact: Vince Hope, Vice President
Honor Flight Rochester, Inc.
[email protected]

Veterans’ Welcome Home Celebration Set for June 22

Second Honor Flight Rochester, NYRochester, New York. Honor Flight, the private not-for-profit organization dedicated to flying WWII veterans to visit their memorial on the Mall in Washington, D.C. announces the addition of Rochester, NY as the newest of its 72 community “hubs” across the country.

Begun in 2005 with six private planes ferrying 12 Honored WWII veterans, the national Network is working now in 2008 to fly up to 1,000 veterans and their “guardians” each and every week through November, the culmination of this year’s flying season.

Second Honor Flight Rochester, NYThe formation of a hub in Rochester “will allow us to take hundreds of area vets to see the Memorial built in their honor, rather than the handful that have been privileged to travel so far,” explained Kathleen Wall, founding President of Honor Flight Rochester. Kathleen and her husband Patrick, of Geneseo, experienced Honor Flight with her father, uncle and several veteran friends this past April, and arrived home energized to expand the opportunity to all Rochester veterans.

“But the news isn’t about us, it’s about our heroes – our mothers and fathers – who sacrificed in the 1940’s so that we could enjoy the lives we lead today,” said Wall. “And the news is about their memorial and our simple way of saying thanks by helping those who otherwise would never see the magnificent monument built in their honor.”

Ten Rochesterians are on an Honor Flight this weekend, after a year on the national waiting list. They return to Rochester International Airport Sunday June 22, on AirTran #486 scheduled for arrival at 1:40 p.m. Six WWII veterans will be arriving home accompanied by 4 guardians.

“We celebrate our formation,” said Wall, “by inviting the public to join us at the airport Sunday for a heroes homecoming. We hope entire families can be there. Our gratitude should be shared and felt by all generations. What better way to begin Rochester’s own Honor Flight.”

Members of the new local Honor Flight Board expect to be joined by members of American Legion and VFW posts, other veteran’s and community groups and their families. Also on hand will be two WWII vets who have flown on Honor Flights earlier this year and know the thrill of the experience. Tom Hope of Brighton traveled with his son Vince as guardian in April. Norman Bachman from Irondequoit just made the trip two weeks ago on the maiden flight with a newly formed hub in Buffalo/Niagara, where he was accompanied by the founder of Honor Flight, Earl Morse of Springfield Ohio.

Second Honor Flight Rochester, NYOther founding Rochester Board members besides the Walls, and the younger Hope, include Jeff and Kim Gould, Bette Daloia and Ron Pettengill, all of Webster; Peter Glennon of Brighton and Ed “Woody” Mench of Pittsford. The HonorFlightRochester.org website will be going live shortly and the new organization is now opening its doors for veteran travel applications, donations and sponsoring partnerships. Free Honor Flights are made available to all area WWII Veterans on a first come, first served basis, and to veterans of any age who may suffer from a terminal illness. Inquiries should be directed to [email protected].

To augment Sunday’s event coverage, news organizations can reserve a photo cd of the Hope’s Honor Flight in April with an advanced phone call.