Central Missouri Honor Flight’s last ride held Monday

Nia Hinson

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Columbia welcomed home 70 area veterans Monday night after a day trip to Washington D.C.

Central Missouri Honor Flight’s embarked on its final flight Monday morning, a trip that gave veterans the opportunity to see memorials in Washington D.C. years after their service. 69 Vietnam veterans were on board the flight, as well as one Korean war veteran.

One of those veterans was Steve Achenbach, who served in the Vietnam War in 1970 and 1971, working in the air force as an aircraft mechanic.

“I had a wonderful day and then boy, to come in here like this, when we come off the bus and there’s 50 plus motorcycles and then be followed by state police and they stopped every car on every intersection, it was great,” Achenbach said.

Honor Flight asked the public to attend the veteran’s arrival Monday night at the Columbia Courtyard by Marriott, located at 3301 Lemone Industrial Dr. Hundreds of family members and first responders flocked to the area, holding American flags in their hands and posters.

Veterans arrived in buses around 9:30, escorted by around 50 motorcycles and were greeted by community members and several first responders.

Achenbach said the day was jam-packed, consisting of veterans getting to view the Vietnam wall, Korean War and World War II Memorial. He said he viewed the day as a chance for veterans to receive the respect they’ve earned.

He was influenced to go on the trip by his friend, Gregory Kam who attended flight 68.

Kam surprised four of his friends on Monday, greeting them at the Courtyard when they arrived. After his experience, he said he knew it was something other veterans should experience.

“You never forget it, never forget it at all. It’s a nice way to honor those who serve for you,” Kam said. “When I was in service going home every year, dressed in uniform, going to the airport, there was no Hi, nothing. It was like we weren’t there so this is good closure.”

Patricia Grimes and Michelle Wamble were one of the many family members who greeted their family member at the hotel on Monday. The two stood alongside 9 of their other family members.

“It was just amazing,” Grimes said. “My grandpa was in the Vietnam War so they didn’t get something like this and so it feels nice that after this many years, we can kind of repair that and give him back some of what he didn’t get before.”

Wamble became visibly emotional after reuniting with her father, crying as the two embraced.

“It’s a big healing process and I hope this has healed him. I don’t see my dad cry very often but I seen him in tears tonight so that’s awesome. I think he’s begun to heal,” Wamble said. “

Spokesperson for the group Shelley Becker told ABC 17 News via text message Monday afternoon that the buses were expected to arrive in Columbia around 10 p.m.

According to Becker, hundreds of motorcyclist were planning to stage at the Firefighters Memorial in Kingdom City ahead of the veterans’ arrival. Greeting and crowd announcements were also expected to be conducted when the buses arrived at the 174 mile-marker on Interstate 70 near Hermann and the buses slowed down near Kingdom City as they were escorted, Becker said.

“Tonight is all about these 70 veterans who have waited a long time to get closure,” Becker said.

Since launching flights in 2009, Central Missouri Honor Flight has taken nearly 5,600 veterans on flights to the nation’s capital.

Organizers told ABC 17 News on Sunday that a lack of applicants, as well as rising costs played a role in the organization deciding to stop the flights.

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