McCordsville resident Lloyd True and his daughter, Anita Lewis of New Palestine, were among the 172 veterans and guardians who traveled Oct. 26 on an Indy Honor Flight, which takes war-time veterans on a free one-day trip to Washington, D.C. to see memorials erected in their honor.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – It’s been more than 70 years since Lloyd True retired from the U.S. Army, but it still warms his heart when people thank him for his service.
On Oct. 26, the McCordsville man took an Indy Honor Flight with 85 fellow veterans for a whirlwind tour of the memorials that have been erected in their honor in Washington, D.C.
Founded in 2012, Indy Honor Flight facilitates about four such flights a year for veterans of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam wars.
The local organization is one of over 130 hubs of the National Honor Flight Network and one of four in the state, along with Evansville, Fort Wayne and Lafayette.
The program is entirely run by donations and volunteers.
Indy Honor Flight’s board president, Trina Winegardner, said veterans don’t need to be nominated but simply apply. The wait list is lengthy, however, with roughly 800 veterans on the list in central Indiana, partly due to travel being postponed during the COVID pandemic.
Top priority is given to the oldest veterans and those who are terminally ill.
At 93, True made the cut this fall.
Each trip accommodates 86 veterans and a guardian of their choosing, preferably someone at least one generation younger to help facilitate travel.
True was accompanied by his daughter, Anita Lewis of New Palestine.
“It was a wonderful experience,” she said.
The father and daughter joined their fellow travelers at Plainfield High School for dinner Friday, Oct. 25, before heading out on the one-day trip bright and early the following morning.
The group took a chartered flight straight to Washington, D.C., where they boarded luxury buses for a whirlwind, one-day tour of multiple spots throughout the city.
They visited the World War II Memorial, the Veterans Wall of Honor, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial and the Air Force Memorial, and also got a front row seat at the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.
When the group returned back to Plainfield that same night, they were welcomed home by dozens of family members and friends, many dressed in red, white and blue, waving American flags.
“When little kids came up to me and said, ‘Thank you for your service,’ it was so heartwarming and impressive. I appreciated it all so much,” said True.
Winegardner said Honor Flight veterans don’t always know they’ll receive a big reception when returning home.
“We try to make it a surprise for them. We have some (friends and family members) who fly in from across the country to see them,” she said.
True said it was an honor to take part in last week’s adventure.
“People were just so kind and nice to me. It was just a wonderful experience all the way around,” said the lifelong Hancock County resident, who was born and raised in Buck Creek Township and graduated from the former Mt. Comfort High School in 1949.
True was drafted during the Korean War in 1951 and served two years as a radio operator, training at Fort Eisenhower (formerly Camp Gordon) in Georgia and then deploying to Japan.
Two years after returning home he started work as a foreman at the Naval Air Warfare Center in Indianapolis (formerly known the Naval Ordnance Plant), where he stayed until retiring in 1986.
“It was a great place to work,” he said.
True still can’t believe what an honor it was to take part in last week’s Indy Honor Flight.
“The trip was wonderful. We were treated so well,” he said.
That’s exactly what Winegardner likes to hear.
Although she didn’t go on the most recent Indy Honor flight, she has gone on flights in the past, and said it’s an experience like nothing else.
“They’re totally surprised at every aspect of the flight. They don’t think that they deserve anything like this, which they truly do, but every little thing we do for them, everyone is just so grateful and appreciative and humbled,” said Winegardner, who finds fulfillment in honoring those who served their country.
She got involved with Indy Honor Flight to honor her father and grandfather, who were both wartime Army veterans.
To apply for a future flight, or to donate or volunteer, visit IndyHonorFlight.org.
For more information, call 317-559-1600, email [email protected], or mail applications to: Indy Honor Flight, PO Box 10, Plainfield, IN 46168.
