By Taylor Sterling
Honor Flight of the Hudson Valley’s Mission # 34 had a massive turn-out at 6am on what started out as a cool Saturday morning with a combination of men, women and children of all ages, the ROTC from various schools, Bagpipers and 3 bus loads of Veterans from Korea, Viet Nam, the Middle East and one WWII Veteran who is 99 years old…God Bless him and all our Veterans. They were proudly escorted in by our amazing Nam Knights led by John “Cheech” Richichi, the President of the Nam Knights and hundreds of other motorcycle clubs. The front of Stewart Airport was lined with spectators waving American flags and cheering our Veterans on and thanking them for their service (see photos). When we all gathered inside the terminal it was people shoulder to shoulder as they read off the various branches of service and played their theme songs – the Veterans stood, saluted proudly and were cheered on once again. They were ushered off to the airplane for a day that will live in them forever. One of those Veterans, Tony Cosimano, that the Nam Knights sponsored is a Warwick resident and Viet Nam Veteran who flew the Huey for one year and was shot down twice. His son, Marc Cosimano, accompanied him. An experience they will cherish for the rest of their lives. When I returned in the evening, I found the crowd inside awaiting the arrival from Washington D.C. for all the Veterans and their guardians. You could not move it was so packed and packed with proud Americans, waving American flags and waiting with excitement for the arrival of the plane where the veterans were given letters from people thanking them and telling them how much they appreciated their service. I posted a number of photos and videos on www.Facebook.com/WTBQAMFM however it appears that FB will not permit a 17 minute video to post which is the video I shot when every Veteran entered the terminal on their return home. We call them all by their first name (from the tags hung from their necks) and yelled WELCOME HOME and added their names. Hundreds cheered, chanting U S A…USA…USA… It was a time in history I shall always remember. Among the other Veterans on this flight was one accompanied by Derrik Wynkoop, President and CEO of Walden Savings Bank, who was the guardian for a Viet Nam Paratrooper, 77-year-old Nick Saccone from Fishkill. Nancy DeAngelo, former Judge for the Town of Warwick’s husband, Floyd DeAngelo, Town Board Council member of the town of Warwick was also on the flight. I wish the newspaper had the room to post all the photos as each picture tells a story of why they came to be part of Honor Flight. I have booked Tony Cosimano on my show (Friday November 8th at 10am) please tune in as his journey in Viet Nam will take your breath away and you will realize the amazing sacrifices these proud Americans have made so we have the freedom to vote and to ensure our safety. Be sure to make time to welcome our Veterans at the next Honor Flight which will be in April of 2025. Lastly, I want to thank Lou Ingrassia, and his amazing team of volunteers who were filled with love and kindness for all our Veterans. BRAVO! For more information about Honor Flight visit their website at Honor Flight of the Hudson Valley.
