According to Mel Ogg, his trip back to the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C. last month was, “well worth the time and wait. I am grateful to Honor Flight and all the volunteers that put it on.” When asked what his trip was like, his eyes lit up and he blurted out, “I got a lot of hugs from the USO ladies serving us coffee and donuts at the airport.”
A warm welcome from the USO ladies was just the beginning. The Virgin Atlantic airline pilot got on the public address system, and for all the passengers to hear, welcomed the thirty-one veterans aboard. Five hours later, when they touched down at Dulles airport and taxied to the terminal, fire fighters mounted on fire trucks showered the airplane in water from their hoses.
From the airport the veterans were loaded onto a shuttle headed for the hotel, wheels chairs first followed by the “walking wounded,” as Mel refers to the ones getting around under their own power. Once at the hotel they paired up with another vet and were assigned rooms. Shortly after getting their rooms, they met downstairs for a buffet dinner. It was during the dinner that a microphone was passed around so everyone could introduce themselves. Mel dreads public speaking, so it was only fitting that he was handed the mike first. He summed up his introduction by describing himself as, “one of the old marines lucky enough to make it back.” They hit the sack early after dinner as they had a full day planned for tomorrow.
Mel Ogg at the Veteran Community Picnic 9-25-11
Nine o’clock the next morning they arrived at the World War II monument. “It was beautiful and I think everyone should see it, especially the vets, Mel said. He was in awe when he stared at the four hundred gold stars stretching across the monument, each one representing a hundred fallen soldiers.
Each vet was wearing a peach colored tee shirt donated by a group of teachers that read, “If you can read this shirt, thank a teacher. If you can read it in English, thank a vet.” While walking around the monument, a woman tapped Mel on the shoulder and asked if it was all right to take a picture of him with the shirt. One of the guardians of Honor Fight offered to take the picture for the woman so she, along with her husband and two children, could be included in the picture. Upon leaving, the woman thanked Mel and told him she couldn’t wait to show the picture to her sister because she is a school teacher.
Mel had his hands full for the next two days, seeing monuments, visiting museums and talking with fellow veterans. However, one particular visit caught him off guard. While standing in front of the Korean monument, which shows life size soldiers dressed in foul weather gear advancing across an open field, Mel felt an ache way down inside, an old familiar pain that never goes away and defies description. Even sixty-four years later, sitting safely in his home at his kitchen table he struggled to put it in words. After staring at the worn table cloth for a time, he looked up and said, “I don’t think there is any words you can use to describe the feeling. You know the shooting is over and you are no longer in danger. I guess it is just a sense of sadness because you remember the guys that didn’t come back.”
It’s a sad fact that many didn’t come back from the war, but Mel and others like him did, and for that we are grateful.
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