(Photo by Wayne Dominowski) Several local World War II veterans, including Rudy Adler, Virgil Brocker and Ken Lubben of Le Mars, and some Kingsley men, were flown to Washington D.C. as part of the Honor Flight, an effort to bring WWII veterans to see the monument for that war in the nation's capital. The Siouxland Honor Flight flew out of the Sioux City Gateway Airport. [Click to enlarge]

The Honor Flight began as a flicker of light three years ago and has grown into a beacon, thanks to retired Air Force Captain Earl Morse of Springfield, Ohio.

It was Morse who flew World War II veterans to see the Memorial, the latter of which was built, completed, and dedicated to them in May 2004. Add to that former NBC news anchor Tom Brokaw's book, "The Greatest Generation," and you have an idea of the evolution of the Honor Flight -- flying WWII veterans to Washington, D.C., to see and experience the monument that encompasses their sacrifices in the call to duty that came Dec. 8, 1941 to serve their Country and fight for the freedom we know today.

The Siouxland Honor Flight, which left Sioux City's Gateway Airport, Tuesday, Sept. 9, was the singular effort of a feisty Sioux City, woman, Cathy Mueller, who between her husband Jerry and her have three children and one grandchild. No question about it, Cathy proved to be the heart and soul of the Honor Flight that took 101 WWII vets to Washington D.C.

"I read about it a year ago and called my dad (Warren Hobbs, Kingsley, IA., a B-17 ball-turret gunner, credited with 52 missions out of Italy during WWII), and asked him if he wanted to see the Monument located in our nation's capitol," Cathy said. He responded emphatically, yes.

The two of them retrieved an application online (www.honorflight.org) from the Honor Flight headquarters in Springfield, Ohio., and noted that there was an upcoming flight out of Omaha, Neb. That flight was completely filled, she learned, and the Nebraska official Cathy was in contact with explained that she would be better off starting up a program of her own to serve the Siouxland area.

"I was in tears," she said, "and I called my husband, Jerry, and told him what I found out and that I wanted to start putting together an Honor Flight program here. He said 'Can't you wait until I retire?'" "I said, I can't wait because [WWII] veterans are dying at a rate of 1,200 a day," she responded.

Her journey leading up to the Sept. 9, flight included fund-raising to make the flight possible. Help came through the benevolence of Eldon and Regina Roth of BPI (Beef Products, Inc, South Sioux City, Neb.), who donated $20,000. (The Roths, very strong supporters of the U.S. Armed Forces, also held a thank you dinner for the 185th Air Refueling Wing (ARW) near Sergeant Bluff, inviting every member and his and her family to participate. The dinner was held in the massive BPI hangar near the Iowa Guard Base.)

A WWII Siouxland family, who wished to remain anonymous, also contributed $20,000 to the Honor Flight, while Humana MarketPoint Insurance out of Davenport, donated $10,000 to the veterans' flight. Hy-Vee delivered supplies of bottled water and disposable cameras to the vets.

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Rudy Adler of Le Mars, a Navy man of 14 years, served on four different ships during that time - a cruiser, destroyer, and two sub-chasers. At 92, he and his wife Marge attended the Pre-Flight Dinner held at the Marina in South Sioux City, Sunday, (Sept. 7, 2008). He was joined by 76 fellow Iowa WWII vets, 22 Nebraska and three South Dakota veterans.

After introductions of volunteer guardians to each of the assembled veterans, the large gathering began the first part of their honored journey. Each walked through a line of U.S. Flags held by members of the American Legion (Motorcycle) Riders of Northwest Iowa and Omaha. Sioux City Police Department Sergeant Mike Manthorne of Sergeant Bluff, pressed his Honor Guard bagpipes while the procession of veterans made their way into Marina's main dining hall.

"There are a lot of these veterans who said they didn't need any assistance," said American Legion Post 131 member Richard Oleson of Allen, Neb., "and yet there's about 20 of them who can barely walk. That's American pride," he said. Oleson, whose father Hans immigrated to the U.S. from Denmark in the early 1900s, earned his American citizenship by serving in the U.S. Army during the Great War (WWI). Richard, one of the assigned guardians, served as an M-48 tanker.

Along with Cathy Mueller's father Warren Hobbs, two Kingsley brothers were also a part of the Honor Flight. Don Bliel, 83, served as a flight officer in the Army Air Corps; he flew a P-51 aircraft and served from 1942-1945. "This is a great honor," he said of the upcoming Memorial visit. "We have to thank all the people who made this possible. His brother Bob, 84, said that the upcoming trip "…is more than I ever expected. This is like a dedication; I can't believe it. A corporal in the Marine Corps, Bob handled a flame thrower - avowedly one of the most dangerous jobs in any land arsenal - and was one of those Marines who stormed the beaches of Iwo Jima.

Members of the Iowa Army National Guard presented the Colors, and afterwards one of the speakers, Bob Moser at the podium, said: "Why did it take 60 years to build the World War II Monument?" He paused, looked around the large dining hall, and then answered his own question. "It took 60 years because The Greatest Generation never talked about it [what they did, their individual sacrifices, or that they had survived]."

Before the dinner began, Cathy Mueller's son, Tim, presented a video of collected WWII black and white photos on a screen. The brief presentation captured the service branches in attendance - Air Force, Army, Navy, Marines, and Coast Guard. The scenes of faces in battle, scenes of devastation and triumph was accompanied by the soundtrack from the series, "Band of Brothers."

When it was completed, there was silence. Cathy had a difficult time holding back her tears. "Thank you for what you did then, and for what we have now. Truly, you are and always have been and always will be The Greatest Generation," she said.

Mueller was greeted by a standing ovation.

The gathering enjoyed their dinner together, listened to the melodious music of the 1940s presented by a WWII attired group called the Aviators out of Omaha, and later departed for what was to be a short night. They arose Tuesday morning and assembled at Sioux Gateway Airport, registered, filed into their aircraft and departed for Washington, D.C.

Editor's note: The above story is published with permission of the Sergeant Bluff Advocate