Honor Onboard

Nine K-9 Comfort Dog teams from 4 states team up to celebrate Stars & Stripes Honor Flight veterans

Call it a “great Golden sandwich.”

With LCC K-9 Comfort Dog teams sending off service members on this month’s Stars & Stripes Honor Flight in Milwaukee, WI, celebrating them as they landed in Washington, D.C., and then welcoming them back at day’s end, there was a lot of tail-wagging joy and Golden Retriever salutes across the country this week.

Lutheran Church Charities saw nine K-9 Comfort Dog teams from Wisconsin, Illinois, Maryland, and Virginia work together to thank and honor 161 veterans and their guardians as they flew from the Midwest to the nation’s capital and back again to recognize their service.

In all, three planes’ worth of heroes, many who served in World War II and Vietnam.

The day began with Charity Comfort Dog (Brookfield Lutheran Brookfield, WI) and her team on hand early Saturday morning to wave to the veterans and see them off from Mitchell Airport in Milwaukee.   

Teams Solomon (King of Glory Williamsburg, VA), Amos (Our Savior Ashburn, VA), and Kezia (Emmanuel Baltimore, MD) were at Dulles Airport in Virginia to greet the veterans as they landed and express appreciation for their service. With flights from Green Bay, WI, also arriving, more than 190 vets total made the “Flight of Champions” trip.

Solomon, Amos, and Kezia also met up with them at the memorials in Washington, D.C. Amos, Kezia and Solomon’s teams gathered for a photo at the Lincoln Memorial and then walked alongside those that went to the Vietnam Memorial.

When the veterans returned home, Samson (Zion Marengo, IL), Rejoice (St. Paul’s Janesville, WI), Mary (St. Paul’s Janesville, WI)), Charity, Sage (CUW Mequon, WI), and Samaria (Shepherd of the Hills Greenville, WI) teams all were there to celebrate the whole day.

One handler at Dulles shared this beautiful moment, “After petting the dogs, a veteran said, ‘Today was perfect. I’m getting a little emotional’ and pointed to the tear forming in his eye. He gestured toward the dogs again and reiterated, ‘Perfect.’ ”  

Another handler commented about shaking hands with all 190 veterans: “We made sure each one felt truly seen, valued, and appreciated. The emotions were powerful—as they always are at Honor Flight arrivals. The veterans don’t know there will be crowds gathered to celebrate and welcome them home, and the surprise moves many deeply.”

One veteran responded, “This is bringing tears to my eyes.”

Another asked in amazement, “Where’d you get all these people?”

Each moment was a reminder of the humility and grace these heroes share — and how God uses simple acts of love, presence, and gratitude to bring comfort and healing to those who have served.

At the Vietnam Memorial, one veteran searched the wall for the name of his childhood friend and then showed his picture. He shared that his friend had gone home for just two days to meet his new baby, returned to Vietnam, and never came back.

Another veteran paused at a pair of boots left at the wall and quietly recalled how often their feet were wet because they didn’t have enough dry socks to wear.

A third handler recalled, “As we waited for the planes to land, we met with people gathered to welcome an Honor Flight arriving from Macon, GA, which had 13 veterans onboard, including a 101-year-old man named Jerry, who was a Screaming Eagle during WWII. His family was there and reminded us that the youngest WWII veterans are now 97 years old!”

For all the K-9 Comfort Dog teams, It was a privilege to walk with these heroes, listen to their stories, and witness how God brings comfort and connection even through the weight of remembrance.
 
Serving at Mitchell Airport, Milwaukee, WI, were:
Charity (with Becky and Gary Kilvinger)
Mary (with Tom and Cheryl Skelly)
Rejoice (with Faith Larson)
Sage (with Billy and Abigail Matt)
Samaria (with veteran Brian Rollefson and Katie Rollefson)
Samson (with  veteran Jeffery Schulman and Christine Schulman)

Serving at Dulles Airport in Virginia were:
Amos (with Jodi Folta and veteran George Folta)
Kezia (with Ric Durham and Ed Cohen and former police officer Patrick Donnelly) 
Solomon (with Dawn Forgit and veteran Philip Forgit)