June 8, 2015 at 4:41 p.m.
Northwoods man takes Honor Flight
Northwoods man takes Honor Flight
By By Andy Hildebrand-
Coyle was in the military for just over two years, and spent most of his time in the states.
"During the period of the Korean War, I was in the Naval Reserve," he said. "After boot camp, I elected to go to something like a clerk school in Maryland. After that, I was assigned to the 9th Naval District Headquarters in San Diego, California. It was kind of an office job. I never went on a ship."
Now, decades after he left the military, the Honor Flight gave Coyle the opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. to visit the Korean War Memorial.
First though, they had to get there.
"It actually starts on Sunday afternoon," he said. "My wife and I went to the Howard Johnson in Wausau. They donate rooms to the veterans on both Sunday and Monday night. We arrived there and parked our car. A fellow approached us with two Boy Scouts. They took our luggage and led us into the lobby where we were registered. All the rooms where the veterans were staying had an American flag that some class project had done. It was really nice."
Next, Coyle and the other veterans traveling on the Honor Flight were introduced to their guardians, people who would travel with them to help with anything they might need.
"(My guardian) was a lineman for Wisconsin Public Service out of Wausau," Coyle said. "He had some old football injuries that always kept him from being able to enter the service. This was his way of paying back the veterans. He spent $500 to become (a guardian) and he's still working, so he had to take a day off. It was really special for him to do that."
The flight went smoothly and before he knew it, Coyle had arrived in the nation's capital.
"We arrived in Washington around 10 a.m., their time," he said. "We had a water cannon salute at Reagan National Airport and when we walked through the terminal, it was just amazing. There were so many people there to thank us for our service. It was kind of unexpected. I knew from talking with other guys that they had people waiting when you got back to Wisconsin that night, but it was really unexpected to have people waiting in Washington D.C. They were business travelers or families traveling that wanted to thank us."
They spent the day touring the various memorials and even made a stop a the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Coyle said the most impactful sight he saw though was the Korean War Memorial.
"It was a fantastic trip and it was great to see all the war memorials," he said. "Being a Korean veteran, I was really taken aback by the Korean War Memorial. It was the highlight of the day for me."
After a full day of sightseeing, the group boarded another plane and made for Wisconsin.
"We got home at about 10:30 p.m. at Central Wisconsin (Airport) and there must have been 3,000 people greeting us there," he said. "It was just really wonderful. It was a great experience and I would recommend it to anyone who has served."
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