Clarksburg Honor Flight guardian continues her husband’s legacy

LOST CREEK, W.Va. (WBOY) — With the Clarksburg Honor Flight set to take off this weekend and show around 100 local veterans the memorials built in their honor in Washington, D.C., one of the 70 guardians is continuing a tradition set forth by her husband.

After her husband Greg Burnside passed away three years ago, Cathy Burnside is ready to continue his legacy after he served as a guardian on previous honor flights and fought in the Vietnam War.

“He was thrilled with it and it seems like the men that he was assigned to—and he had actually kind of picked out some of the guys that he wanted to take and they just thought it was awesome and they loved it,” Cathy Burnside said.

A guardian’s job varies by which veteran is assigned to them, some guardians even care for two veterans at a time. A guardian’s main goal is to care for their veteran in whatever way is needed, and unlike veterans who get to fly for free, volunteers like Burnside pay for their own portion of the trip, all to give back to those who fought for their country.

“It’s a privilege, really, for me to be able to do it, and I’m excited as to who I’m going to meet, ‘cause it’s a—it’ll be a stranger or a friend that I haven’t met yet,” said Cathy Burnside.

Cathy said she’s excited to continue participating as a guardian in the years to come.

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