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Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, October 09, 2014, Pages 1 &2
Four from area take "Honor Flight"
Four with area ties participated in an "Honor Flight" to Washington, D.C. last week.
Pictured (L-R) are: Brandy Anderson, Mount Ayr Casey's manager whose company helped sponsor the trip; John Cline,
Harold Cooper, Lorrie Haver; Jim Hullinger and Roger Townsend, Mount Ayr Hy-Vee store director, another sponsor of
the trip.Four Ringgold County Korean War-era veterans took a trip of a lifetime last week when they were part of an "Honor
Flight" to Washington, D.C. Harold Cooper of Mount Ayr, Lorrie Haver of West Allis, WI, John Cline of Tingley and
Jim Hullinger of Mount Ayr all said it was a trip they would never forget. The Honor Flight Network was begun in 2005
to help World War II veterans visit newly constructed World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C. The program has since
been expanded to include veterans of the Korean and Vietnam wars. The veterans visit a number of memorials in the
capital during the all-expense paid trip which is sponsored in Iowa by Hy-Vee, Casey's General Stores and Prairie
Meadows. The four stayed in Des Moines Monday evening and were treated to an honorary dinner that evening. Early Tuesday
morning they boarded a plane in Des Moines for the whirlwind trip to visit the monuments in the nation's capital. They
returned to Iowa that evening. None of the four had visited the monuments before the trip. There were over 400 veterans
and their guides on the trip which visited the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, the Vietnam War
Memorial, the Marine Iwo Jima Monument, Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier as well as the
Air Force Memorial. "The comradery on the trip was amazing," said Haver, one of only five women veterans on the trip.
Haver served in the
Navy from 1952-1955 and was stationed in Japan in 1954-1955 during the Korean War. "It was an amazing experience
I would not have wanted to miss. The reception on the way to the airport and after we returned was very special."
Cline served from 1954-1955 as an army private at Fort Riley, KS. "The outpouring of support was tremendous," he
said. "Everyone wanted to shake our hand and thank us. I'm not sure I really deserved all that." For Cooper, a Staff
Sergeant in the Air Force who served in Korea during 1952-1953, the visit to the Korean memorial had additional meaning.
He entered the service the same time as Kenneth Davenport of [Page 2] Mount Ayr. "We took our physicals together.
I went to the Air Force and he went to the army. He never returned." Hullinger served as a combat medic in the army and
was in Korea from 1955-1957. He said the visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and Arlington National Cemetery was
both his favorite, and saddest part of the trip. "Looking at all those tombstones and thinking about how I could walk
around because they were there makes you think," he said. "Just thinking about all the untapped talent under the ground
there. It shows us the futility of war." All of the veterans were very appreciative of the sponsors of the trip, two
of which have local locations -- Caseys and Hy-Vee. Two people with ties to Mount Ayr also were along on the trip as
"guardians," those who helped the veterans during the trip. They were Brian Christner of Des Moines, son of Barb Christner
of Mount Ayr, and Noah Carpenter of Council Bluffs, Christner's son-in-law. "We are so proud to work for a company that
values the service of all our veterans and those currently enlisted in the armed forces," said Mount Ayr Hy-Vee store
director Roger Townsend. "Hy-Vee's dedication to all who have served is easily observed with the annual company-wide
Free Veteran's Day Breakfast, Hy-Vee Home Front program, and it's continued support of the Honor Flights. It's special
to have four local veterans to be able to attend this last Honor Flight sponsored by two companies that have strong
ties to Ringgold County." Brandy Anderson, manager of Casey's in Mount Ayr is glad the company she works for helps out
such a worthy cause. "It's great we're able to help out with the program," she said. "Casey's supports our veterans
and this is a great way to thank them for their service."
Mount Ayr Record-News
Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, November 06, 2014, Page 2
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Honor Flight a wonderful event
To the editor:
Read with interest your article about the Ringgold County veterans that had the honor of going on the Des Moines Honor
Flight to Washington, D.C. Having served 18 months in Korea during the war I was privileged to be a part of the Ozark
Honor Flight to Washington, D.C. that flew out of Springfield, MO October 21. Our flight consisted of 75 veterans and
75 guardians, plus doctors, nurses and media. Our son, Jerry Noble, came down from Iowa to accompany me as my guardian,
which made the trip extra special. It was a wonderful experience from the big send off, charter plane ride, bus tour
with police escorts, greeters everywhere, mail call and a large reception upon arrival back in Springfield with the
Shriners Band performance and lots of flags. We still live in the best country. I would highly recommend any veteran
to go on an Honor Flight if you have the opportunity. It is something you will never forget.
(Rollin Noble is a former resident of Mount Ayr.)Rollin Noble
Branson, MO
Photograph courtesy of Mount Ayr Record-News
Transcriptions by Sharon R. Becker, January of 2015
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