LAKELAND, Fla., April 7, 2016 – U.S. Rep. Dennis A. Ross (FL-15), Senior Deputy Majority Whip, this evening welcomed home about 70 military veterans from Polk, Hillsborough, Pinellas and Madison counties from their Flight to Honor trip to Washington, D.C. The Flight to Honor Polk Florida program is organized by the Polk County Veterans Council and its chairman, Gary Clark. The program flies veterans of World War II and the Korean and Vietnam Wars to the nation’s capital to visit memorials dedicated to and honoring those who served in such wars. The veterans flew to D.C. early this morning and returned home this evening to the Lakeland Linder Regional Airport, where Ross greeted them and presented them with Challenge Coins.
“Every time I have the honor to meet and thank a veteran for his or her courageous service, it moves me in ways too extraordinary to explain,” said Ross. “As the son of a World War II Navy veteran and a brother of three veterans, I have the utmost respect, appreciation and admiration for the sacrifices these selfless men and women made to protect our country and our freedoms. Meeting with and shaking the hands of these brave veterans makes you stop and thank the Lord for your blessings, including living in a free country with such honorable men and women defending it. I am so happy to see the Flight to Honor program provide our local veterans with this amazing service, even a once-in-a-lifetime trip for many of them. I want to thank Gary Clark and the wonderful folks with the Polk County Veterans Council for helping make this trip happen. We must continue doing all we can to help and serve those who put our lives before their own.”
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