Recently, a local veteran was given a trip to Washington DC as one of 98 veterans of WW II and Korea, and this was sponsored by Honor Flight San Diego. Each year this organization selects several such vets for the trip to visit the various memorials in DC.
Wilfred “Archie” Archuleta was selected to go in the fall of 2020, but the trip was postponed due to the pandemic. This year, on the afternoon of September 30th, Wilfred, who lives in Oceanside, drove to San Diego and was given a room in the Holiday Inn there, (all of the activities were fully paid by Honor Flight, the veterans paid for nothing). That evening they were briefed, and each was given an Honor Flight T-shirt to be worn throughout the trip.
Early the next morning the plane left for the six-hour non-stop flight to Baltimore, Maryland. On arrival they were met by a volunteer for each veteran to serve as a guide and help when needed for the entire visit. A number of them were wheelchair bound. Wilfred is not, but the volunteer was at his side throughout. The oldest visitor was 107 and there was a former WAC (Women’s Army Corps) who was 102. They all boarded busses to Washington and checked in at the Hilton Hotel. On arrival they were given letters written by young students from all over the U.S. thanking them for their service. Wilfred got 71 of them.
Over the next two days, the tours included the Jefferson and Lincoln memorials, Arlington Cemetery, the Capitol Building, WWII Memorial and more. One interesting item was that a gentleman appeared, dressed in full army uniform, and identifying himself as General Douglas MacArthur, chatted with and posed for pictures with the veterans, apparently with the approval of Honor Flight. On the night of October 2nd, there was a dinner. The speaker announced, “We have a birthday boy among us!” It was Wilfred and he was presented with a T-shirt with the large number 92, which was the age he had reached that day.
The flight back to San Diego left the next day and landed about 3 PM. The debarking veterans were greeted by a crowd of more than 300 people and saluted as they exited via an escalator. Many were waving flags. Some had signs saying, ‘Welcome Home’ and ‘Thank You’. Wilfred admits that it was one of the highlights of his life. It goes without saying that our entire community is glad that he and his fellow veterans were honored.
A more complete story of Archie’s service can be read in the Veterans’ Writing Group’s Book IV to be released in the next quarter. The book, “At Ease – Now That I Have Time to Think About It”, will be available on Amazon in hard copy and digital. Archie’s story is titled “A Penny for My Thoughts”.
http://www.veteranswritinggroup.org/
