Rochester's Honor Flight Program to be Honored

Rochester, MN (KROC AM News) - A small dedication ceremony is scheduled in Rochester Wednesday to honor a large undertaking.

During the event, a bench located at the Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial will be dedicated in memory of the city’s “Honor Flight” program that took place several years ago.

The program ran from 2007-2010 and involved ten flights of World War II veterans. A total of 1,032 vets from southeast Minnesota were flown from Rochester to the National World War II Memorial in Washington, DC, all expenses paid. Organizers raised more than $1.2-million from private sources and citizens to pay for the flights. Chaperones who assisted the vets paid their own expenses.

Honor Flight Bench, Soldiers Field Veterans Memorial -photo by Kim David, Townsquare Media

The bench is west of the main memorial near the maintenance building and is one of several that are located at the site.

The dedication ceremony is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m.

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