Not one, but two Dansville World War II veterans had the opportunity recently to visit their memorials through Honor Flight Rochester.
Honor Flight is a national program that pays tribute to war veterans by providing them with a free trip to Washington, D.C., allowing them a chance to see their memorials. Veterans are provided flights based on the order of their application and medical priorities.
Rochester is one of 90 hubs for the Honor Flight program, and out of that 90, Rochester is one of the only Flights that allows veterans the opportunity to stay overnight.
Dansville veteran Gerrard “Bud” Maltby, who served in the 193rd Tank Battalion, 10th Army in Okinawa during the final year of the war, and served in the Army’s 586 AAA Battalion for occupational duty until his discharge in December 1946, attended the Flight during Father’s Day Weekend.
The importance of his Father’s Day weekend was furthered by sharing it with his son Kevin, who was his guardian.
Harold Ross Glover, who served in the 36th Infantry Division, 142nd Infantry Regiment in the European Theater from 1942 to 1945, also attended the Flight during a significant weekend – especially for a veteran – Memorial Day Weekend. He, too, had a special guardian, his son Bob, who is a Vietnam veteran.
Each Honor Flight veteran is assigned a guardian as a chaperone for their trip. Guardians pay their own way at an expense of $300. Both Glover and Maltby expressed the honor of having had shared this meaningful experience with their sons.
For Glover, his son was not the only familiar face he saw on the trip. It happened that the group leader for the Flight in D.C. was Bob McGovern, a retired Marine Major who grew up in Dansville and lives in the D.C. area. “I was completely surprised to see Bob McGovern,” Glover said.
Also meeting Glover, but not by surprise, was U.S. Army Colonel Kevin Dunlop, who works at the Pentagon and whom Glover had mentored through Boys State. Another greeting him was Dansville native Danny Smalt, Glover’s nephew, who is a retired Navy Chief and worked at Camp David under the Reagan administration. He, too lives in the D.C. area.
When Glover reached the World War II monument, he was greeted with another hometown surprise. Bridget Quibell of Dansville happened to be there at the same time chaperoning Dansville’s National Honor Society students.
Not one, but two Dansville World War II veterans had the opportunity recently to visit their memorials through Honor Flight Rochester.
Honor Flight is a national program that pays tribute to war veterans by providing them with a free trip to Washington, D.C., allowing them a chance to see their memorials. Veterans are provided flights based on the order of their application and medical priorities.
Rochester is one of 90 hubs for the Honor Flight program, and out of that 90, Rochester is one of the only Flights that allows veterans the opportunity to stay overnight.
Dansville veteran Gerrard “Bud” Maltby, who served in the 193rd Tank Battalion, 10th Army in Okinawa during the final year of the war, and served in the Army’s 586 AAA Battalion for occupational duty until his discharge in December 1946, attended the Flight during Father’s Day Weekend.
The importance of his Father’s Day weekend was furthered by sharing it with his son Kevin, who was his guardian.
Harold Ross Glover, who served in the 36th Infantry Division, 142nd Infantry Regiment in the European Theater from 1942 to 1945, also attended the Flight during a significant weekend – especially for a veteran – Memorial Day Weekend. He, too, had a special guardian, his son Bob, who is a Vietnam veteran.
Each Honor Flight veteran is assigned a guardian as a chaperone for their trip. Guardians pay their own way at an expense of $300. Both Glover and Maltby expressed the honor of having had shared this meaningful experience with their sons.
For Glover, his son was not the only familiar face he saw on the trip. It happened that the group leader for the Flight in D.C. was Bob McGovern, a retired Marine Major who grew up in Dansville and lives in the D.C. area. “I was completely surprised to see Bob McGovern,” Glover said.
Also meeting Glover, but not by surprise, was U.S. Army Colonel Kevin Dunlop, who works at the Pentagon and whom Glover had mentored through Boys State. Another greeting him was Dansville native Danny Smalt, Glover’s nephew, who is a retired Navy Chief and worked at Camp David under the Reagan administration. He, too lives in the D.C. area.
When Glover reached the World War II monument, he was greeted with another hometown surprise. Bridget Quibell of Dansville happened to be there at the same time chaperoning Dansville’s National Honor Society students.
The itinerary for the more than 100 veterans, chaperones and nurses for each trip included a 5 a.m. arrival time at Rochester International Airport and a 6:50 a.m. departure. By 9:30 a.m., the group had flown into Baltimore, arrived in D.C. by motor coach and had begun their tour. Their first stop was Arlington National Cemetery.
From there, they moved onto the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier; World War II, Korea, Abraham Lincoln, Vietnam and Iwo Jima Memorials, plus other stops before the day ended with a banquet at the Hilton Hotel at 7:30 p.m.
“It was super deluxe, every bit of it,” Glover noted. “It’s hard to describe everything that took place.”
But visiting the memorials wasn’t the only highlight for these two local veterans. Among the most touching experiences were the way in which they were honored.
On the flight out of Rochester, the veterans were given a special Mail Call. Each veteran received a packet, and inside were letters written by Rochester area elementary school children who thanked them for their service.
Once arriving at the hotel, Hilton staff gave them a welcome. “Wherever we turned there were people there greeting us,” Glover said.
At each of the airports, the veterans were met with military personnel, children and civilians, who greeted them and thanked them for their service.
It was heartwarming, Maltby said. “You couldn’t hold back the tears.”
On Maltby’s return to Rochester, the Barnard Fireman’s Band played for the vets, as well as having been greeted by a number of men and women in uniform. For Glover’s return, a Marine Corp Color Guard greeted them, as well as a three-star General, a Colonel and a school band.
While these two local veteran servicemen, both in their eighties, had the chance to be honored in this special way, they wished Honor Flight had developed sooner so that more World War II veterans – now dying at an average of more than 1,000 each day – could have had this opportunity too.
Honor Flight was first organized in May 2005 in Springfield Ohio, and the network has since flown more than 35,000 veterans of World War II, Korea and Vietnam to see their memorials. Honor Flight is supported through individual and business donors.
