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By YMPvt Jonathan Merritt Manassas VA My unit helped a group of veterans from AustinTexas who were attending the 2015 WW II veterans honor flight. We had re- ceived an email informing us of the oppor- tunity to help with this great event. We planned to take the veterans around DC to visit the memorials. Along with UC Kevin Gilliard we met the veterans who were staying in local hotel. The Young Marines who signed up from Manassas and Shenadoah Valley gathered together and we were instructed on how to look after veterans. We were assigned a veterans name and headed to the elevator. My veterans name was Col. Huie Lamb USAF Ret. When we met we shook hands and he asked me if I was in the service. I said that I was with the Manassas Young Marines. I explained who we are and what we do. I helped Col. Lamb with his bags and we set up the wheel chair he sat down and we waited at the elevator doors. We got in the elevator and when we reached the first floor we began to head towards the chow hall for breakfast. I helped Col. Lamb with his plate and got us a seat. One of the other guardians offered to keep a eye on Col. Lamb while I went to get my plate and I did the same for her. Dur- ing breakfast we heard many stories about his years in the Air Force as a fighter pilot. I was fascinated by his stories since Ive always had a inter- est in aviation.After chowwe headed to the buses. I helped Col. Lamb out of the wheel chair to get into the bus. We waited on the bus for about 10-15 minutes until the police escort arrived and we rolled out to head towards the World War II memorial which Col. Lamb never had been able to visit. He has seen it before it was opened but it was his first visit to the site. We went to the Texas pillar at the memorial where I took his picture for him to show his family back in Texas. A woman approached us and asked Col. Lamb if he would mind being interviewed for a tribute video for all WW II vet- erans. He gladly agreed and she asked him several questions-- his name where he served and if he wanted to say anything to future generations. Col. Lamb answered each question he was asked and when the interview was done we headed to the Lincoln Memorial. But it was crowded and seemed dif- ficult to get to with a wheel chair so we just took pictures. Then we headed to the Vietnam Memorial which Col. Lamb seemed to enjoy. He took many pictures of the ghost platoon and The Wall. When we finished up there we went over to the Korean War memorial.I helped him take several photographs there. After that we loaded up back onto the buses and headed towards Arlington National Cemetery for the changing of the guard. When they had finished there we went back towards the buses.We stopped and got a few pictures of the cherry trees in bloom. We then rode to- wards the Memorial of the Marine Corps.We also got pictures of the Capitol the Wash- ington Monument and the Lincoln Memo- rial all in one shot. We then went to the Air Force memorial. Col. Lamb seemed very ex- cited to see this memorial.We saw the three large pillars going up and then slanting. We went underneath the pillars and looked over to the Pentagon. We had a good view of where it had been hit on 911killing 125 people inside the Pentagon including my grandfather. We were kept from the Navy Memorial due to the fact that there had been a shooting at the Capitol building and that whole street was on lockdown. We decided to go over to the Pentagon and see the 911 benches that they have on the side of the building that was hit on 911. We walked up and down through the rows of benches reading the names and thinking of that tragic attack. We finally got to where my grandpas bench was and Col. Lamb took a photograph of me at the bench. After that we began to talk about my grandfather and I told him how he was in the army and served in Viet- nam.We talked more about WW II and talked about the Pentagon. We slowly headed back towards the buses once we got aboard we had talked some more about many different things and how he was returning to Texas that day. The bus took us all to Wash- ington National Airport and we all had sandwiches for din- ner. We got in line to board the flight and when we got to the station where they check the tick- ets a flight atten- dant took Col. Lamb onto the plane and we waved goodbye. Assisting a Visiting Honor Flight WWII Veteran in D.C. ESPRIT Page 17