Saturday we
left Stafford, VA around 7AM and drove to Dulles Airport near Chantilly,
VA. One of our friends, Tony V., had suggested
that we go with him on an Honor Flight welcome sometime. It sounded like a neat idea so Saturday was
the day we were scheduled to go. We
arrived around 8:20 and the flight was delayed till about 11AM….so we waited and
talked with the other 120-130 people that had gathered to honor some of our
Veterans. When the Veterans began coming
through the gate with their handlers it all came in focus. They
were not aware that we would be there to welcome them….some were in kind of a
shock when we started clapping, shouting, holding up signs, waving American
flags and walking up to them to shake their hands and thank them for their
service and call to duty….it was a truly memorable experience. There were young children as well as old
people thanking them. Please check out
the pictures that one of our group, Lou R., took. The Veterans were wearing the blue
windbreakers, their helpers/handlers were wearing red and the Honor Flight
group wore yellow. The bikers wore black
leather and the Princess and I wore red/white and blue! grin
There was one lady, a Navy Veteran, in the
Veteran’s group but the rest were men.
All in various states of health….some had walkers some canes and some in
wheelchairs but about half walked on their own!
We are losing about a thousand of these Heroes a day and this little
gesture of thanks is something everyone can participate in. The Honor Flight website explains it much
better than I can so please visit their site at http://www.honorflight.org/. After the Heroes visited the restrooms they loaded
into the 5 waiting tour busses. After
they were secure they left for D.C. escorted by a group of American Legion bike
riders! WOW…. What a day….something I will always
treasure. We need to do that again….soon.
On the way
home Tony recommended we catch lunch at Santini’s near Chantilly, VA….a good
decision! So….a Greek was recommending an
Italian Deli….this may not end well.
Happily we found that the food was great and unlike most Deli’s this one
had more than ample room to sit and tables with chairs capable of supporting my
svelte self. Most Deli’s use chairs that
would collapse if you put a Sears catalog on the seat….the ones at Santini’s
could be used for safety stands under our truck! I know not many of you think of such things
but if you have ever picked yourself up from the floor after performing a
failing stress test on a chair you would understand. I recommend Santini’s when you are in the
neighborhood.
Saturday
evening we cruised to Fredericksburg, VA and the Family Diner cruise. Even though I was still a little full from our
visit to Santini’s earlier, the Princess said we must eat…. You ever see a
picture of little birds in a nest when the adult bird brings the food….the
little chicks screech with their mouths open….chirping, feed me feed me. So we ate….again….within 4 hours….I felt like
a tick that had been hanging on someone for a week….burp. As I have said before the food is great at
Family Diner and I really enjoy eating there….but for the first time I can
remember I had to take food home in a doggie box….I hate that. ‘They’ say that women always take food home
but rarely eat it later. Men, however,
rarely take food home but always eat it later…. I think I can buy into that
conclusion…. warmed up french fries at midnight are ok! The Colonial Beach Cruisers paid a visit and
there were about 20 cars before the night ended. This is a very relaxed cruise….just friends
talking about cars, life and anything else that comes up….even politics! The night started getting a little chilly around
9PM so we cruised home and got the truck ready to the next day. The Princess whined till I turned on the
valve for the heater….heat!? I guess
fall is right around the corner.
Sunday we
cruised 22 miles to Occoquan, VA and the Prince William Cruisers fall benefit car
show. As in years past their charity is
Wounded Warrior Project. This year they
presented Wounded Warrior Project with a check for $7,177….not bad for a local
car club! Dan & Ramona and the Princess
& I always enjoy helping them with their shows. The Princess and Ramona sell T-Shirts, Dan
helps Dave with checking in this year’s 185 participants and I help Jo and
Roger with registration. This show usually
attracts a lot of participants with varied vehicles and this year did not
disappoint. Steve is able to make sure
the show runs with Swiss watch precision due to the adept assistance from an
army of club members. Their working
harmony is conspicuous and very few are left standing around long after Steve
sees them. I just wish Steve could bring
more clip boards…..grin Sally and her helpers sold more 50/50 tickets than I can remember, almost $1300....WOW!
The quality
of vehicles is astounding and the ‘Best of Show’ was a work of art. It’s not something I would drive but it was
something to marvel at….the result of many craftsmen’s skill and effort. There was a red ’71 Plymouth RoadRunner that
made the Princesses blood pressure rise a little. And I’m glad Bill & Lisa brought out their
red ’37 Ford Slant back….the little travel trailer really sets it off! But my favorite was the little yellow &
white Nash Metropolitan….we see it occasionally and it is always an
attraction. While I was taking the
photograph I overheard someone ask the owner, a lady, how much she would take
for the car. With no hesitation she said
$100,000! I guess that was just easier
than saying it’s not for sale….chuckle….
After the
award ceremony we had an uneventful cruise home….then another feeding stop at Hibachi
Grille in Stafford….a very busy weekend….
Just wait till next weekend….we are going to “Occupy” a Mopar show, just
wait till you see what I do to a New York Trooper cruiser….it may be on the
evening news….or not? We’ll see….hehehehe
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