It was raining gently Sept. 29 as 35 former soldiers slowly
came off the bus at the entrance to the Columbus Club at E.D.
White Knights of Columbus council home in Arlington. Some
used canes, and many were guided off the bus by volunteer
helpers.
The driver opened the storage area and handed wheelchairs and
walkers to volunteers who helped the veterans from the New
England Honor Flight contingent navigate the receiving line
that greeted them. In addition, there were about 70 family,
friends and support people on the trip.
The soldiers, veterans of World War II and the Korean War,
came by charter bus from Boston Sept. 27 to Washington to see
the monuments, especially their own, the National World War
II Memorial. The group laid a wreath at the Tomb of the
Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery. They visited
the Vietnam and Korean War Memorials and toured the U.S.
Capitol. Their arrival at the council home for dinner was
their final event in the Washington area, before their return
to New England.
The Knights have been serving meals to Honor Flight
participants for about five years. Knight Owen Beirne, whose
father served in World War II, has been organizing these
dinners since the beginning when an Honor Flight official
contacted him to see if the council could help with a lunch.
His father served in World War II, and he was familiar with
Honor Flights and said he could help.
“I get calls to do, maybe, 30 a year – 15 in the spring and
15 in the fall,” said Beirne.
This event was different, he said, because of special guest
Marine Corps General Paul Xavier Kelley, the 28th commandant
of the Marine Corps.
Father John Cregan, retired pastor of Blessed Sacrament
Church in Alexandria, and a retired Marine Lieutenant
Colonel, was there to see his friend Kelley address the
veterans.
Father Cregan said that the men and women who fought in World
War II are true heroes, and that sense of duty and patriotism
are hard to find these days.
“They are the ‘Greatest Generation,'” he said.
Retired General Joseph Ward shook hands with of the veterans
as they left the bus. His name tag showed his rank, and some
of the old men called him, “General.”
“I’m just Joe,” he told them.
There were many Knights of Columbus dignitaries in the
receiving line, including State Deputy Stephen P. Raschke and
Past State Deputies Stephen A. Burnley and Tom Harger.
After an opening prayer, the Joint Armed Forces Color Guard
brought the U.S.flag and the flags from each branch of the
military services to the front of the ballroom for the Pledge
of Allegiance.
During the meal, Beirne introduced Grand Knight John M. White
who introduced Kelley.
Kelley was the first recipient of the Francis P. Matthews and
John E. Swift Educational Trust Scholarships established in
1944 to pay the college expenses of the children of Knights
who died in the line of duty.
Kelley also headed the American Battle Monuments Commission,
responsible for the building of the National World War II
Memorial, something he called his “highest honor.”
After Kelley’s speech, each veteran was given a flag that had
been flown over the U.S. Capitol. Three retired Air Force
generals were there to hand out the flags: Maj. Gen. Ward,
Gen. Gregory Martin and Gen. Paul Hester.
The evening ended with taps played by bugler Michael Foster
of Bugles Across America.
Army veteran Bruce Gist, 92, was a combat engineer in
Germany. He said the evening and the trip were “incredible.”
He lived in the Washington area for a while, but coming back
this time was different and special.
Mitchell Ramanos served in the Army Air Corps during World
War II and was taken prisoner by the Germans. He was touched
by all the attention he received on this trip.
Grand Knight White said the Knights’ love of country runs
deep, so this effort is embraced.
“How can we not provide for these veterans who are on
pilgrimage to their memorials? It’s the least we can do,” he
said.
A hard, steady rain greeted the veterans as they returned to
their buses for the trip back to their hotel. They were old
soldiers, members of the Greatest Generation, treated like
the heroes they are.
