Despite the Vietnam Memorial being a busy place full of crowds of chattering people, the loudest sound is the stitching and scratching of pencils etching the names of fallen soldiers onto pieces of paper. The atmosphere is both heartbreaking and heartfelt. All around, veterans are remembering and recounting their time served, just like they did at the numerous other memorials they visited on their Honor Flight.
This year’s trip, organized by Veterans Network Committee Honor Flight of Northern and Western Illinois, may have hosted fewer people than previous years, but the emotions are high as they all make unforgettable memories.
“It’s just been wonderful to be able to spend time with these guys,” says Navy veteran Paul Smith, “to hear their stories, and to honor them as well.”
The VNC is a program that allows veterans to visit Washington DC on an Honor Flight free of charge. Veterans were able to visit numerous monuments, museums and memorials, all accompanied by a tour guide. While the trip may seem like a vacation to some, it’s actually much deeper than that for many of these veterans.
“This has been a very exciting trip for me,” says Air Force veteran Jim Hughes. “I’ve met a lot of new individuals, veterans. I worked the honor guard where I live for many years now, and the camaraderie with veterans, I don’t think is anything you can beat, because they usually think like you do. They have a lot of experiences like you do.”
One thing that made the trip so special was that every veteran had a story to share or a specific monument or memorial that resonated with them.
“The Honor Flight has been a once in a lifetime opportunity for me,” says Army veteran Tanya Reyes, “because, quite frankly, most of the veterans here are World War Two, Korea and Vietnam. I’m probably one of the youngest veterans here, and to be able to do this is the chance of a lifetime.”
”I was an Apache helicopter mechanic,” says Reyes. “I was the only female in my entire platoon, and I really had to step up my game to be able to even put my hands on a tool.”
Being a woman in the military can be tough, Reyes says. But, in the end men and women in the military have one common goal – to serve and protect their country.
“The men in my unit felt that it would be better if I just stood along the sidelines and watched them perform the maintenance,” continued Reyes. “It wasn’t until there was a backup bus system in the very front nose cone of the Apache helicopter, where I had to go in and remove a backup bus system because my hands are small, and I could get in there, and the men couldn’t. So, that’s where I shined. And I was actually able to say, You know what? I can do this. And they allowed me.”
It’s because of experiences like these that make visiting memorials and monuments so memorable for veterans. When visiting the Women’s Memorial, Reyes stated, “Even being in this building feels empowering.”
“When I served, I wanted so badly to be approaching on the Apache helicopter,” says Reyes. “I couldn’t, since women weren’t allowed to be in combat. Today, women are. And women have that opportunity.”
The Honor Flight is an annual occurrence in McHenry, and veterans who sign up are often on a waitlist for up to two years.
One group of veterans got together to share their stories and experiences with Warrior Student Media, showing some of the deeper meanings to the Honor Flight. Even though their stories were shared with WSM in the hotel lobby, their retellings made it feel like somewhere else entirely.
Having all lived together in the same neighborhood, Jeff Johnson, Paul Smith, Chris Giorno, Chuck Sano, and Rupert Wenzel, getting the chance to go on the Honor Flight together made the experience better than ever.
“We were products of fathers who fought in World War II,” says Marine veteran Jeff Johnson. “They were very proud of what they did when they had come home, having defended their country. So my brothers and I felt an obligation to serve when the Vietnam War started. My father did not want my brothers and I to go to war, but he couldn’t have been more proud of us when we came home.”
Many veterans were asked the question, “If you could go back in time to when you chose to enlist, would you change your mind?” Their answers were predictable – they wouldn’t change a thing.
“Enlisting was probably the best thing I ever did, even though there was a war on, I never had the camaraderie that I had in Vietnam or with my Marines,” says Johnson. “You shared everything together. You drank out of the same canteen, you smoked out the same cigarettes. You know, if you were wounded, they used their bandages on us, or we’d use ours on them.”
Another thing that helped bring all the veterans together was their sense of camaraderie among one another. Camaraderie stays with them, both in and out of service.
“Being on this trip gives me an appreciation for how lucky all of us were,” said Navy veteran Rupert Wenzel. “Regardless of what branch of service or what we did, we’re at a stage in our lives, where we’re fortunate enough to be where we are and to have gotten this far. The camaraderie with this group here has just been very good. It feels like we get to know each other a little better each time we get together.”
The Honor Flight wouldn’t have been the same without the togetherness that all of the attendees felt. Friendship, brotherhood and sisterhood made the trip more emotional than ever.
“I almost couldn’t go to the wall, but because my friends were with me, they weren’t ashamed of me for crying my eyes out,” says Johnson. “They took me to the wall, and they even took etchings of my friends’ names. That’s what they did for me today. That’s camaraderie. This is what the military teaches you. They stuck with me – left no man behind – and it went from a horrible experience to a great one.”
Just because the Honor Flight is now over and all the veterans are back home, doesn’t mean that their friendships get put on hold. As a matter of fact, they’ve become stronger than ever because of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
“Every now and then, and we go, we have coffee, or we have drinks, and we start telling old stories again,” said Smith. “Some of the stories we’ve all told are ones we’ve heard over and over and over again, but they don’t grow old, they just get better.”
Joan Ruud • Sep 17, 2025 at 8:34 pm
Thank you for such an amazing article honoring our heroes. Well said, and it sounds like this trip is one they will never forget. Thank you for sharing.
Judy Serra Smith • Sep 17, 2025 at 7:52 pm
I enjoyed reading Michalina’s article. She did a wonderful job and it was written beautifully. She is very talented.
Stefanie • Sep 17, 2025 at 4:16 pm
An opportunity of a lifetime for not only the veterans that have fought for our freedom, but for the young Americans to witness and hear the stories of the men and women who have fought for our country. I am so proud of our community’s involvement with the honor flight. These are memories that will last a lifetime. Thank you for bringing light to a remarkable event.