Bluffton resident Joe Ayers appreciates those who made Wednesday’s 40th Honor Flight possible
By DAVE SCHULTZ
Joe Ayers was back in Bluffton Thursday, feeling really good about his previous day.
How could he not?
Ayers was a guest Wednesday on the 40th Honor Flight, which takes veterans to Washington, D.C., to view military sites. The White House and the Capitol were off-in-the-distance landmarks. They visited the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, and the Military Women’s Memorial. The latter was particularly noteworthy because five of the northeast Indiana-area residents on the Honor Flight were women, including one that had attained the rank of colonel.
Any number of things made the trip memorable for Ayers, who served during the start of the Vietnam War — but not in Vietnam, itself — as that conflict was ramping up.
Instead, he was sent to Germany, where he worked in a supply operation. It had everything the Army had, and sent supplies to Vietnam.
Ayers is aware that some soldiers were disregarded and in some cases demeaned for their service during that time, but Ayers never experienced that. It had been a possibility, and he described it as “scary.”
But instead he ended up in Germany, where his service was “like another job.” He was disconnected from home, for sure; he had the News-Banner sent to him during his stint in Germany, but he received them about a month later — and then, many at the same time. The Palm Sunday tornado outbreak of 1965, which killed two people in Wells County and dozens more across the Midwest, occurred while he was in Germany but he didn’t find out about it until a month had gone by.
Still, Ayers had served his nation, and was eligible for the Honor Flight, and it’s safe to say he’s glad he went.
“Those involved with the Honor Flight made you feel special,” he said.
Ayers got a surprise at the Honor Flight’s first ground stop Wednesday when former Bluffton Parks and Recreation Department Superintendent Pam Vanderkolk greeted him at the World War II Memorial. Vanderkolk, who now lives near Washington, knew that Ayers was coming and decided to meet an old friend. “She said he told (her husband) John that she was going to meet another man,” she said. “I was just so surprised that she took the time to meet me.”
There were other stops — the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, the Korean War Memorial, and the Vietnam War Memorial.
“When you get off of the bus, they thank you for your service,” he said. “People on the street would see you in your red shirt and come up to thank you for your service.”
The red shirt was what all the Honor Flight participants wore, and it served Ayers well. He’s been known in Bluffton for playing Santa Claus, and his long white beard had some on the flight wondering about his alter ego.
Aleta Weiss, an Honor Flight board member from Monroe, Ind., who was on Wednesday’s trip, finally asked Ayers if he’d ever thought of playing Santa Claus.
“Why would you ask that?” he asked her.
“Because of this,” she said, pulling on his beard.
“I’ve been doing it about 15 years,” he replied.
“You definitely look the part,” she said. After a moment, she tried to wrangle a favor, asking for “such and such” for Christmas, he said.
“I put my arm around her and said, ‘Do you remember your behavior last year?’”
She paused a moment. “I’m screwed, aren’t I?” she asked.
Weiss, nevertheless, drew a laugh from Ayers the rest of the trip, saying that she’d “shape up” if it would make a difference.
What Ayers will remember most about the trip will be the people he met and the people who took care of the veterans.
“The memory is going to be how these people are doing this for you,” he said. “They were saying continuously to you all day, ‘Thank you for your service.’”
Ayers wants to spread the word about Honor Flights among veterans.
“There’s a lot of veterans that are not signed up for this for one reason or another,” he said. “Maybe they don’t know how. I’d be willing to show them how and give them the sales pitch. It’s so easy to sign up online.”
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One more thing: A letter from a schoolgirl, a project that the Honor Flight does to give the veterans another bit of joy. Ayers — whose real first name is Harvey — was given a bag full of those letters, as were the others on the flight.
The girl, named Jocelyn, had done this before. She admitted it was somewhat of a chore to write to someone she didn’t know.
She started her letter “Dear Veteran,” and admitted “I hate doing these letters but if it makes you feel better getting them, then alright,” she said.
She concluded: “I’ll just leave on this note: “Thanks for whatever you did and have the mindset that you are a hero to some people.”
Ayers, with a smile, accepts that.
daves@news-banner.com
