Chairman’s Corner
Happy October, everyone!
We have just completed our 2018 flying season with our 3rd flight of the year on October 20, our 28th flight! The weather was terrific in Washington DC and our beloved Veterans had a wonderful tour of honor and appreciation. There were 9 other Honor Flight groups there with us and we had a great time meeting other Veterans and volunteers from all over the country. All the IHF crew did a tremendous job; the photographers, the flight crews from American Airlines, our U.S. Park Police escorts, all the Guardians, Ground Crew and other supporters were top-notch! We love to see a flight come together and all the hard work to get to flight day is forgotten the minute we see all the Veteran smiles!
It is truly humbling to see the reactions of the Veterans as they get mobbed by school kids, re-enactors, active-duty soldiers, other Honor Flight’s personnel, tourists, park rangers and D.C residents. All the “thank you for your service”, kisses, hugs, handshakes and high-fives let our heroes know they are loved and respected for things some of them did long before most of the people involved were even born. These men and women made it possible for us to live the way we do, they deserve every bit of recognition we can muster. One Veteran told me he could not believe all these total strangers cared about him…a Korean family stopped one of our Korea War Veterans and said “thank you for saving our lives”…another Veteran said the anger and resentment he had felt since 1972 was gone…this trip is more than a trip, folks.
Speaking of being around a while, our oldest Veteran on the trip was 97, the youngest just a “kid” of 75! It is terrific to see the generations come together to meet, become acquainted and make new friends during the flight. We hope all our Veterans get to visit each other and continue the camaraderie long after the flight is past by joining us on our other adventures during the year; the monthly meals, the Annual Reunion, attending other flight Homecomings, and just around the corner, the Veteran’s Day parade!
Our photographers are loading our photo page with hundreds of amazing photos of our October flight, take the time to look them over and see just how our wonderful day went! All photos are available for downloading for FREE, this is one more service we offer our Veterans and their families. Go to the “Photo” Page on our website Click here for IHF then click the Flight 28 link, you will not be disappointed! We appreciate the hard work of both our Indy and Washington D.C-based photographers, they are amazingly talented.
We have several events and fundraisers coming up and we hope you are all following us on Face Book so you can keep track of what the Indy Honor Flight is up to! We love to let folks know about other Veteran-related events as well, so if you know of something coming up email us at info@indyhonorflight.org so we can let others know. We provide speakers for civic group meetings so more can learn about our mission! Let us come make a presentation to your group; we have made 8 such presentations in the last month!
If any family/friends or Guardians would like a copy of the Flight 26 (April) or 27 (May) photo memory books, we had a few extras printed. The books are $30 each plus $3 shipping. Please email us at info@indyhonorflight.org with your contact information and which book you would like to have and we will get it in the mail as soon as we can. Payment may be made by mailing us a check or by clicking the “Donate” button on our website, just be sure to add your information in the “Special Instructions to seller” spot so we know what the donation is for! (please don’t send payment until we confirm a book is available for you, they go quickly-first come first served!
Please read through the upcoming events below and support the IHF with donations of your time, money and by spreading the word about what we do to everyone you know. Together we can make a difference in our Hoosier Heroes’ lives. We offer a sincere thanks for all who have done so and continue to make our work possible. Remember to thank a Veteran today and every day!
In service,
Dale True Chairman, Indy Honor Flight
Let’s Eat!
Veterans did you know we sponsor meals in four locations around the Central Indy area for any Veteran that has flown with us? Did you know that we also have guest speakers or entertainment at each meal? Click the link below and find the one closest to you and come out and break bread with us! Bring your Guardian too !
Link to IHF Monthly Meal Information just click on the CALENDAR tab for information on all IHF Events around town!
Calling all Veterans! Who wants to be in the Downtown Indy Parade?
Who doesn’t love a parade? The Annual Downtown Indianapolis Veterans Day Parade will be Saturday, November 10, 2018. The parade starts at 12:00pm. Please contact Gary Lawrence gary.indyhonorflight@gmail.com if you’d like to participate! If you have a large, comfortable vehicle that could seat 3 Veterans, we may have room for you in the Parade! Contact Gary for all the information!
Shop Amazon and help IHF!
Only 60 days until Christmas! If you like to get your Christmas shopping done early why not help Indy Honor Flight out at the same time? Shop at Amazon and they will donate a portion of your purchase to us! Sign up for Amazon Smile and select IHF as the charity you support, that is all there is to it!
Free Show – Musical Tribute to Honor our Veterans by Lasting Impressions
Come out to Mile Race Center in Columbus IN on November 9th at 2:00pm for a tribute to honor our Veterans. Show is FREE to all Veterans.
Free Show – Musical Tribute to Honor our Veterans by Lasting Impressions
Come out to North Vernons Park Theatre Civic Center on November 11th for a FREE show! Show starts at 3:00PM. Donations for Indy Honor Flight will be accepted.
FUNDRAISER – Tour of Ganassi Race Shop – Indy Car Team
Join us on Saturday 11/17/2018 from 1:00pm to 4:00pm for an inside look at one of Indy Cars top teams race shop. A $10 donation gets you a behind the scenes look at the high performance shop, the cars and even a few drivers!
IHF Out and About
- October 28th Knights of Columbus Chili Cook off
- Friday 11/9 Musical Tribute to Honor our Veterans Columbus IN
- Sunday 11/11 Musical Tribute to Honor our Veterans North Vernon IN
- Saturday November 10th Veterans Day Parade Downtown Indianapolis, IN
- Ganassi Racing Open House Fundraiser November 17th – tours start at 1:00pm and end at 4:00pm, $10 donation.