Inland Northwest Honor Flight
Join us on the mission to serve our veterans who have served us
Inland Northwest Honor Flight is taking off once again.
The non-profit was grounded due to COVID-19 restrictions for the past two years. Now, veterans can be flown to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials built in their honor.
The local non-profit is escorting more than 100 veterans on a trip on April 25-26, 2022.
In support of our ‘Salute to Service’ campaign and all of our military members and veterans, KREM 2 will be on the flight covering one WWII veteran, five Korean War veterans, and 94 Vietnam War veterans as they receive the honor of visiting the capital city and the memorials.
You can meet the veterans that will be joining us on the Inland Northwest Honor Flight below.
Join us on the mission to serve our veterans who have served us.
To donate to Inland Northwest Honor Flight, click here or scroll to the bottom of this page.
Meet Louise Griffith Inland Northwest Honor Flight's only female veteran
When veteran Louise Griffith got off the plane following the 2022 Inland Northwest Honor flight, she and her male counterparts were greeted with cheers.
Griffith served in the United States Marine Corps and said this trip was more than she could have imagined.
When the flight returned to Spokane, Honor Flight volunteers announced that Griffith would lead the group through the gauntlet of family and fans.
While she was the only woman to attend this year's Honor Flight, plenty more are waiting to go.
Veterans return home April 26, 2022
Inland Northwest veterans were welcomed home after a trip to Washington D.C. to visit war memorials built in their honor as part of this year's Honor Flight.
The local non-profit escorted more than 100 veterans on the trip from April 25-26.
Read the full story here.
Inland Northwest Honor Flight takes off April 25, 2022
After more than two years of waiting, dozens of veterans from around the Inland Northwest will finally get the chance to visit war memorials in Washington, D.C.
KREM 2 is joining a group of World War II, Korea and Vietnam veterans on a trip to the nation's capital on Monday, April 25. The flight is set to take off from Spokane International Airport (GEG) at 9 a.m.
Meet Norm Boehnke Vietnam War
Although Army veteran Norm Boehnke was in Vietnam more than 50 years ago, the memories of what he had to do and what he saw come without much prompting.
“I was part of the Big Red One," Boehnke explained. "For me, I just don't like war. I was in a war, but I don't like it. Because so many innocent people get hurt. I've seen people getting hurt."
Boehnke was a teenager when he joined the military in 1963. He went to Fort Knox, Ky. for training, then traveled to Korea and Germany before being sent to Vietnam.
“I was what we call grunt infantry. Out walking around the woods and carrying a gun and looking around, see what's going on," Boehnke said. "So you can stay alive and stuff like that."
59 years after he joined the military, Boehnke will be one of the 100 veterans traveling on an Inland Northwest Honor Flight to Washington, D.C.
“I just want to go back and touch the wall and say goodbye,” he said.
When Boehnke visits the Vietnam Memorial, he hopes to find some of the names of his fellow veterans who didn’t make it home.
“I think you'll probably see me tear up or something," Boehnke said. "An old guy my age tearing up is scary."
Donate to Inland Northwest Honor Flight
Inland Northwest Honor Flight relies on donations to ensure that these men and women are able to see the memorials to their service and sacrifices.
- Your gift of $25 provides a veteran with a keepsake of his or her day.
- Your gift of $50 supports 1 veteran with 3 meals for a day.
- Your gift of $100 defrays the cost of a guardian to accompany his or her veteran on an Honor Flight trip.
- Your gift of $200 helps ensure medical personnel flies with veterans on an Honor Flight.
- Your gift of $1000 sponsors 1 veteran on an Honor Flight trip.