Central and Southwest Virginia Honor Flight visit memorials, monuments in Washington D.C.

WASHINGTON, D.C. ( WFXR ) – The second day of the Central and Southwest Virginia Honor Flight was packed from start to finish as 15 veterans of the Vietnam War and the Korean War traveled to Arlington, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. visiting memorials and monuments dedicated to their service.

Saturday, October 19 began with a stop at the Military Women’s Memorial , where two of the trip’s veterans and one guardian were honored for their service.

“I’m amazed,” said retired Chief Master Sergeant for the United States Air Force Shelvie Wood. “This is a great honor. And I appreciate this today.”

She was the first woman from Virginia to be given that title, in addition to being the first Virginia woman to record several other achievements.

Being recognized for those contributions and achievements brought emotions back to the surface Wood.

“It swells my heart,” she said through a combination of laughter and tears. “This means a whole lot to me because I have a brother and a sister-in-law both retired from the Air Force and I always wanted to hang in with them.

After departing the Military Women’s Memorial, the trip made stops at the U.S. Marine Corps Memorial , the Navy Memorial , the Air Force Memorial , the World War II Memorial , and Arlington National Cemetery , where the group got to witness the changing of the guard.

The day concluded with a visit to the Vietnam Wall and the Korean War Memorial .

Several members of the Honor Flight had never seen many of the memorials they visited throughout the weekend, including Korean War Veteran Joel Hart.

Hart spent 16 months serving in Korea and on Saturday he finally got to see the memorial commemorating the service of himself and his fellow soldiers.

“It’s been a long time ago, but I haven’t forgotten,” said Hart. “I never will forget about how things were and the way things went in North Korea.”

During his service, Hart experienced everything from below-freezing cold temperatures to a period of ammunition rations.

Due to a wreck involving a ship carrying ammunition to Korea, each soldier was allocated just seven rounds a day for their weapon.

The 93-year-old Hart also served in the month-long Battle of Heartbreak Ridge.

While visiting the memorial, Hart was thanked for his service by many, including several Koreans.

One man shook Hart’s hand while tearfully thanking him. A few moments later, another couple stopped to express their gratitude.

“We could get freedom because of you, thanks to you,” they said.

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