The Guardian, an Honored Copilot

HONOR FLIGHT

“The Guardian, an Honored Copilot”

By Matthew Shillingburg

“We can’t all be heroes, because somebody has to

sit on the curb and clap as they go by” is a quote by Will Rogers and inscribed on every Honor Flight San Diego Guardian’s t-shirt. It is the essence of the connection between the Guardian and the Heroes that the Guardian accompanies to our Nation’s Capital.

Founded in 2005 by Earl Morse, Honor Flight Inc. began to take flight with volunteers flying small planes with World War II Veterans, our heroes, our national treasures, on board to see the WWII Memorial in Washington, D.C. Honor Flight and HonorAir joined forces to form the Honor Flight Network.

Over 245,178 heroes have traveled to our nation’s capital from over 130 Honor Flight hubs throughout the United States.

San Diego happens to be one of those hubs which was founded in the summer of 2010 by Dave Smith. Honor Flight San Diego has flown over 1,400 WWII and Korean War Veterans to Washington, D.C. since their first flight in October 2010.

The feeling brought me back to my days as company commander, when I was responsible for the health, wellbeing, and moral of my 208 soldiers and now I was being asked to be responsible for the health, wellbeing and moral of my assigned hero.

Once you have served in the Armed Force that sense of “Duty, Honor, Country” never leaves you and those three hollowed words were about to be applied to ensure that this real-life hero was taken care of every step of the way, from “Wheels-Up” in San Diego to the homecoming reunion with his family at San Diego International Airport, terminal 2.

As I mentioned earlier, I see things through a military lens, I immediately deemed this massive operation of transporting the largest ever Honor Flight San Diego in over two years with 93 WWII and Korean War Heroes, ranging from 85 to 105 years of age, with six over 100 years old and six female veterans, as “Operation Whirlwind Hero.” From the first notification, I made sure that all my paperwork required was current and up-to-date, and that I met all the training requirements to serve as an Honor Flight Guardian.

Now it was time to meet my Hero, 91-year-old Korean War Veteran, Stanley Martinez of El Centro, California, who I would become very close to in the coming days. I called Stanley for our initial introduction over the phone and followed up with a subsequent phone call.

Our first in person meeting occurred the night before our departure to Washington, D.C., on Thursday evening at the Holiday Inn Bayside. My wife, Susan and I greeted him, his wife, and his family members as they dined, we had a conversation with him and his family and then retired for the evening, knowing that there was a long and tiring day ahead of us with a 5-and-a-halfhour flight to Washington/Baltimore Airport. I would meet him in the lobby of the Holiday Inn Bayside the following morning where my duties of an Honor Flight San Diego Guardian would begin.

Born on May 6, 1930, in East Los Angeles, California during the depression, Stanley Martinez entered the United States Army in 1950. He was assigned as an Infantryman and went through Basic Combat Training at Camp Roberts, California, prior to being shipped overseas to Korea where war was being fought between North and South Korea. Upon arrival in Korea, Stanley was reassigned to be a tank driver with the 7th Infantry Division. He was promoted to Staff Sargent and was awarded two Bronze Stars Medals for his heroic service during the Korean War. At the end of the conflict in 1953, he returned to the United States where he settled in El Centro, California, with his family.

Between the flights, the tours of the Memorials in our Nation’s Capital, our meals together, our on-and-off the bus, the swapping of life in the Army, the heartfelt feelings he had when he read his letters during “Mail Call” on the departure flight, and the return “Heroes Homecoming,” it became an overwhelming emotional experience for both of us that will last us both a lifetime.