Let us share with you a heartwarming story of more than 70 brave and heroic veterans from WWII, Korea, and Vietnam who returned home to the Central Coast of California, thanks to the efforts of Welcome Home Military Heroes and Honor Flight organizations. These organizations came together to pay tribute to these courageous men and women at the Santa Maria Airport, and their goal was to break the previous attendance record of 315. And guess what? They exceeded that goal with over 1,000 people showing up to honor their service and sacrifice.
Honor Flight is a national organization with a local hub on the Central Coast, providing free trips to Washington DC for WWII, Korean and Vietnam veterans to visit their memorials. Welcome Home Military Heroes is a local, family, and veteran-led nonprofit organization that honors and supports Central Coast veterans. This incredible event had over a dozen national and local military organizations in attendance, including government agencies such as the US Air Force, US Space Force, US Army, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo Sheriff's Departments, Santa Maria Police, and more.
The cameraman, Robert Tolan, is the Co-Founder of Welcome Home Military Heroes and Vice Chairman for Honor Flight. We would also like to honor the legacy of Carl Robbins, who was supposed to go on the trip with them but unfortunately passed away a few days before the trip. Let us always remember and honor the contributions he made to our country and community.
