Southern Nevada Veterans Take Part in Honor Flight

By: Chuck N. Baker

(Washington, D.C.) — Many words have more than one meaning. Take the noun “honor,” for example. The Merriam-Webster dictionary has 10 definitions. The word “flight” is another example. The dictionary has seven meanings. But when the proper nouns “Honor Flight” are used together, they can only mean one thing: America’s military veterans are being flown on a no-cost (to them) visit to Washington to view the monuments that commemorate the military history of the United States.

Honor Flight Southern Nevada is headed by Las Vegan Belinda Morse, who initially volunteered with the Northern Nevada counterpart of the national organization, headed by Jon Yuspa, whose great-grandfather served in WWI. (Among other accomplishments, Yuspa organized an All-Paiute-Tribe Honor Flight in 2017.)

In 2013, Morse started the southern branch of the nonprofit and sought out veterans in and around the Las Vegas area. Her father was in the Air Force in Vietnam, and her husband is also an Air Force veteran. “I always volunteered with organizations wherever we lived,” she said. When she relocated to Las Vegas, Honor Flight was an instant attraction.

This year the group included two 82-year-old widows, Jean Mohler and Joan Keltner, who happen to be identical twins. Veterans of the Cold War, they joined the Marines and were stationed at the Marine base in El Toro, Calif.

There was one WWII veteran among the group — Leslie Camp, age 95, who was in the Army Air Corps working as an engineer keeping U.S. warplanes operating. “I worked on parts, wheels, anything that needed servicing,” he said. Regarding his Honor Flight visit, he said, “I’ve enjoyed the association with other veterans.”

Mort Friedlander is an Air Force veteran of Vietnam, who is currently director of the Las Vegas-based nonprofit Kline Veterans Fund. “This Honor Flight was as eventful as it could have been,” he said. “I enjoyed it immensely.”

The group of senior citizens, along with their volunteer guardians, visited the following memorials: WWII, Marine Corps, Korean War, Vietnam Wall, Arlington Cemetery and the Air Force Museum. (The planned Navy Museum and National Archives visits were cancelled due to rain.) Participants who were asked all agreed that the highlight of the visit was an elaborate ceremony held in the rain at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The ceremony began with a woman guard carrying a rifle and meticulously walking a mat, while following a prescribed number of steps timed to the second. She continued until there was a change of the guard, a memorable sight to see in and of itself. (The guard changes every hour during the winter months.) Right after the changing of the guard, dark clouds appeared, and rain began to fall. Despite the downpour, four Nevada veterans from the Honor Flight braved the rain and presented a wreath to a guard who placed it on a stand in front of the tomb. The fact that it was raining did not deter from the proceedings. In fact, it added to the solemnity of the event and the overall ceremony brought tears to many who viewed the transfer of the wreath, entrusting it from four Nevada veterans to a member of the Tomb’s Honor Guard. The proud veterans were Army veteran Jackson Thompson, WWII’s Leslie Camp and Marine Corps twins Jean Mohler and Joan Keltner.

Former Nevada Assemblyman Dennis Nolan, currently the EMS Chief of the Reno Fire Department, regularly volunteers with the Southern Nevada Honor Flight and acts as chief medical officer for the group. Over the years he has successfully treated several medical emergencies in the air. While medical problems can potentially cause planes to make emergency stops, Nolan handled the problems and said, “We’ve never had to land the plane.”

Morse made it clear eligible veterans for the honor flights do not have to be combat veterans, re-emphasizing serving in combat is not a requirement. He added that it doesn’t matter if a veteran worked stateside, never carried a weapon, toiled in the supply room, in the motor pool, as a clerk, cook, or took part in other non-combatant roles, if one served in the U.S. military, they are eligible. “They are all veterans, and they served the nation,” she pointed out.

For more information, to apply to take part in future Honor Flights, to volunteer as a guardian or to donate, call (702) 749-5912, or go to honorflightsouthernnevada.org.

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