Robert Gurley and James Blue can't agree on when they first met, but what they can agree on is they have been the best of friends since childhood. When Robert was "snatched off the street and sent to Vietnam," it didn't take James long to enlist to follow his friend. Through the barbs and bonds that all good friends share, Robert and James have another commonality: helping each other through the post-war trauma of service in Vietnam.

When a young Catholic priest saw many of his parishioners being sent to war in Vietnam, he felt it was his duty to serve as well. It took Father Richard Shannon years of lobbying, but eventually, he was granted permission to enlist. During his tour of duty, Father Shannon said mass and ministered to countless troops, including at LZs deep in the jungles of Vietnam.

Stuart Poticha, the youngest surgeon on faculty at Northwestern, received a phone call from a Colonel informing him he was going straight to Vietnam before his draft card ever arrived. At Basic Training, he couldn't hit a target feet from his face and generally refused calisthenics. His antics -- and those of his fellow doctors -- were tolerated only because "court-martialing a surgeon caused too much paperwork." But Stu Poticha could save lives. And the 12th Evac Hospital in Vietnam, where he was Chief of Surgery, did that better than anyone else.

Jerry Zabel was born in Munich, Germany, to a mother and father who barely survived Nazi concentration camps. The young family emigrated to the United States and Jerry found his parents always reluctant to talk about their experiences during WWII. When the Vietnam War broke out, Jerry's off-the-charts intelligence and insatiable curiosity about the nature of war drove him to enlist—and soon the realities became all too real.

Air Force Captain Dave Adams was an F-4 Phantom fighter pilot in Vietnam, flying more than 200 missions over North Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. A long-time member of the Honor Flight Chicago volunteer interview team, it's time for us to tell Dave's own remarkable life story.

In Episode 47 of this podcast, we profiled long-time Welcome Home flag line member Sonny Zdancewicz, whose bravery in Vietnam earned him three Bronze Stars and three Purple Hearts. Only recently did he become interested in receiving those medals at the urging of his family, and at the same time decided that it was time for his own Day of Honor. That day came on July 24, 2024, and you can travel along with him in this special episode.

Robert Gatenby had just married his wife of 56 years, Diane, when his draft notice arrived. During his service in Vietnam, Bob experienced the darkest moments war can bring. To protect his wife and parents, however, Bob's steady stream of letters home never let on to the danger he faced. This is a story of how war changes those who fight, and how love can conquer all.

On June 6, 1944, Richard "Dick" Rung was aboard LCT 539 as it attempted repeatedly to land at Omaha Beach in Normandy among fierce German resistance. The memories of what he saw and experienced that day remain vivid, even as he approaches his 100th birthday and especially as he traveled to France to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

While Ken Molnaire was working as an usher at the Des Plaines Theater in 1941, news broke of the Japanese bombing at Pearl Harbor. Though Ken had never heard of this faraway location, the attack there set into motion world events that would send Ken across the pond to Europe as an integral member of Patton's Third Army.

In July of 2024, we celebrate the 11,000th senior war hero Honor Flight Chicago has brought to our nation's capital -- the most of any hub in the nation. How do we fly so many veterans while giving them all a personal 1-on-1 Guardian for the day? Our dedicated, selfless volunteers who live in the Washington D.C. area. This is their story.