Honor Flight San Diego

Posted on 1 Mar 2023 by | Comments Off on Honor Flight San Diego

By Holly Shaffner

Coming this spring – Honor Flight San Diego for WWII/Korea/Vietnam War Veterans and terminally ill Veterans from any era. The organization will fly 85 senior veterans on a three-day trip to Washington, D.C. to visit the memorials built for their service and to truly honor them for their service. The trip is planned for April 28-30, 2023, and a second trip is planned for Sept. 29-Oct. 1, 2023.

The Veterans will visit the WWII, Lincoln, Korea, Vietnam Memorials, the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Memorials, and Changing of the Guard Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery, and women Veterans will visit the Military Women’s Memorial.

The trip is at no cost to the Veteran due to generous community supporters. Every Veteran is paired with a guardian/battle buddy who pays $900 to help offset the per person cost of the trip.

How can you help?

  • If you know a Veteran from WWII/Korea/Vietnam Wars, or a terminally ill veteran, please help them apply at: www.HonorFlightSanDiego.org. They can also call (800) 655-6997 to have a hard copy application sent to them.
  • Save the Date for Sunday, April 30 and Sunday, Oct. 1 to welcome them home at San Diego International Airport. There will be 800-1,000 people there to give our heroes the homecoming they deserve!
  • Share information about Mail Call to your community groups. The organization is collecting letters, cards, and notes for the Veterans going on the flight. Letters can be sent directly to: Donna Hester, 645 Front Street, Unit 614, San Diego, CA 92101. You can also contact Donna with questions or to request a letter pick up by emailing her: donna@thehesters.com or calling her cell: (619) 985-9729. Deadline to receive mail call for the spring flight is April 22nd.

Thank you for your support to get our SoCal Veterans on a “Trip of a Lifetime!”

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National Vietnam War Veterans Day

Posted on 1 Mar 2023 by | Comments Off on National Vietnam War Veterans Day

If you served on active duty in the U.S. Armed Forces (at any time) from November 1, 1955, to May 15, 1975, regardless of location, then this day is for you – National Vietnam War Veterans Day. 

Every year on March 29, our country gives a long overdue THANK YOU and honors Vietnam veterans, and their families, for their service and sacrifice. Many may ask, “Why March 29th?” This date is significant because it was March 29, 1973, when the United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam was disestablished, and the day the last U.S. combat troops departed Vietnam. Also, on and around this same day Hanoi released the last of its acknowledged prisoners of war. 

Our nation can never forget the 58,000+ service members whose names are memorialized on the Vietnam Wall, or the 1,500+ service members who remain missing and unaccounted for. 

The Department of Veterans Affairs estimates there are more than 7 million U.S. Vietnam veterans living in America and abroad. Whether you served in-country, in-theater, or were stationed elsewhere during the Vietnam War period, you were called to serve your country.

Here in San Diego County, it is estimated that approximately 60,000 Vietnam Veterans live among us. We should thank our veterans every day for defending our freedoms, but especially on this day, this generation of American men and women deserve two words – Thank you!

Please join us at Miramar National Cemetery on March 29th at 9 a.m. for a special ceremony to truly say thank you to you and your family. While you are on the cemetery grounds, please visit the new Vietnam Veterans Memorial on our Memorial Walkway.  

Welcome Home Vietnam Veterans, Welcome Home!

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MOWW February Luncheon

Posted on 3 Feb 2023 by | Comments Off on MOWW February Luncheon

Meet a Pillar of San Diego

RADM John “Mac” McLaughlin, USN (Ret.)
President & CEO, USS Midway Museum

On Feb. 15 2023. MOWW San Diego will be honored to present RADM John “Mac” McLaughlin, USN (Ret.) at our monthly meeting. He will discuss bis military service, the path that led him to this prominent position and his impactful work in our community.

MOWW February Luncheon
Where: San Diego Unified School District – Revere Center
6735 Gifford Way, Room 8
San Diego, CA 92111
Keynote Speaker: RADM Mac McLaughlin, President & CEO, USS Midway Museum
When: Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2023
Meet and Greet at 11:00 a.m.; Program 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Attire: Business casual
Open to the Public
Lunch: A delicious catered lunch with 2 sides, and drink is available for only $12 per person
**RSVP required: Please contact COL Tim Swann at (858) 496-8203 or by email at tswann@sandi.net

BACKGROUND: Mac McLaughlin is President & Chief Executive Officer of the USS Midway Museum. He was hired as the Chief Operating Officer in December 2003, one month prior to the Midway’s arrival in San Diego and has been the chief executive throughout the building of the Museum. 

Prior to joining the Midway, Mac retired from the Navy as a Rear Admiral in August 2003. During his career as a Naval Aviator, he served as a Commanding Officer of a helicopter squadron and Naval Air Station. He served two tours of duty in the Pentagon on the Chief of Naval Operations Staff and served Flag tours as Commander, Naval Air Reserve Force and Naval Reserve Forces Command. 

Mac is the former President of the Historic Naval Ships Association and the former Chair of the Naval Helicopter Association. He is a board member for the San Diego Port Tenants Association, and a member of the American Association of Museums and the California Association of Museums. 

Mac graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1972 where he was an All-American and Captain of the track team. He holds a Masters Degree in Public Administration from Troy State University. He is married to the former Norah Anne Flynn of Chula Vista and they have two adult children, Kathleen and Stephen and six grandchildren.

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