First all-women Honor Flight bound for Washington, D.C.

SANFORD, Fla. – An ‘Honor Flight’ is ready to honor ladies veterans with its upcoming flight from the Sanford Worldwide Airport Tuesday morning.

The Villages Honor Flight is a nonprofit group created in 2012 — certainly one of 130 hubs within the Honor Flight Community — to honor U.S. veterans by flying them without spending a dime to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials there.

[TRENDING: Police snipers protect Florida divers during water rescue in alligator-infested pond | Strawberries recalled after Hepatitis A outbreak. Here’s what you need to know | Become a News 6 Insider (it’s free!)]

Advert

This yr, the group is planning a first-of-its-kind flight.

“That is the primary all-women flight from Florida and took place following a request from the Tri-County Girls Veterans nearly two years in the past,” mentioned Liza Walters, vp of operations for the flight.

In keeping with Tri-County Girls Veterans, the group was capable of elevate greater than $100,000 to make the journey attainable.

The in a single day flight consists of visits to the Nationwide Museum of the US Navy, the US Air Drive Memorial, the World Struggle II Memorial, Arlington Nationwide Cemetery and the Girls in Army Service for America Memorial, the group mentioned.

Walters mentioned she is glad to see the rising variety of ladies veterans and hopes extra will apply sooner or later.

“It’s about time,” she mentioned. “There are such a lot of of them, and so they’ve by no means actually had the popularity earlier than. That is all about recognizing the massive roles that girls veterans have performed within the army and within the nation. It will likely be actual enjoyable and thrilling.”

Advert

Tri-County Girls Veterans mentioned there can be 109 veterans arriving at Sanford Worldwide Airport early Tuesday morning, the place they are going to be greeted by a colour guard and supplied breakfast earlier than formally boarding the flight.

The oldest girl on the flight can be 97-year-old Ruth Jones, a World Struggle II Military vet.

By way of 2022, The Villages Honor Flight could have flown greater than 1500 veterans to Washington, D.C.