City of Rockledge Donates $22,750 To Support Upcoming Space Coast Honor Flight
By Steve Wilson // July 20, 2015
PHILANTHROPY SPOTLIGHT
BREVARD COUNTY • ROCKLEDGE, FLORIDA – On Saturday, June 6, the City of Rockledge hosted its 17th Annual City Employee Charity Golf Tournament at Rockledge Country Club.
This year’s proceeds went to benefit Space Coast Honor Flight, a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization whose mission is to ensure that World War II and Korean War Veterans are provided with an opportunity to visit their respective War Memorials in Washington D.C.
More than 100 sponsors and contributors, as well as 31 foursomes, made this event a huge success and the City of Rockledge was able to present Space Coast Honor Flight with a check in the amount of $22,750 at the City Council meeting last week.
Since the tournament’s inception, more than $165,000 has been raised for a variety of Brevard County charities.
Space Coast Honor Flight, which honors the spirit and courage of the Greatest Generation was recognized as a Central Florida Humanitarian organization last year.
ABOVE VIDEO: Space Coast Honor Flights, which was recognized as a 2014 humanitarian organization, honor that spirit and the courage that accompanies it. The program was created in appreciation of the unassuming heroes who made incredible sacrifices in order to ensure America’s freedom.
Space Coast Chapter Headed By Retired Air Force Lt. Gen. William Welser
Many of them no longer walk well, those members of the Greatest Generation who can still walk at all. The passage of years have slowed them down and added the infirmities of old age to their bodies, but their spirits remain indomitable.
Space Coast Honor Flights honor that spirit and the courage that accompanies it. The program was created in appreciation of the unassuming heroes who made incredible sacrifices in order to ensure America’s freedom.
The all-volunteer nonprofit provides trips to Washington, DC, free of charge to veterans who served in World War II, Korea or in between those wars.
Vets are paired with volunteer guardian escorts who help them with wheelchairs during the one-day whirlwind tour of the military monuments.
The trip from Melbourne to the Nation’s Capital makes for a long – but unforgettable – day for the vets, who gather together at around 3 a.m. at the Wickham Park Senior Center, where a bus picks them up for the trip to Orlando and a waiting crowd that cheers their arrival.
At Baltimore-Washington International Airport, another crowd welcomes with applause before a bus whisks the vets on the emotional visit to their monuments.
Everywhere they go that day, they are treated like rock stars.
Honor Flight volunteers realize time is of the essence, because according to the Department of Veterans Affairs, an estimated 640 veterans of World War II die each day.
The program was conceived by physician, pilot and retired Air Force Captain Earl Morse, who wanted to honor the veterans he had taken care of for almost three decades.
CHAPTER LEAD BY RETIRED AIR FORCE LT. GEN. WILLIAM WELSER
Many of the vets Morse treated expressed a desire to see the World War II memorial in Washington, DC, but they also admitted they lacked the physical wherewithal to complete the trip on their own and that their families did not have the financial resources to accompany them.
Morse began organizing flights on his own out of his Ohio base.
Soon other pilots joined in. Currently, Honor Flight has 127 chapters in 41 states and has honored more than 100,000 veterans with the flight of a lifetime.
The local chapter is headed by retired Air Force Lt. Gen. William Welser, who is also chairman of the board of Habitat for Humanity.
The need for the program was apparent when Welser saw the reaction his father and father-in-law both had when visiting the Washington military monuments during a family vacation.
He signed up to become an Honor Flight guardian and has participated in more than 20 trips.
Under Welser’s leadership, Space Coast Honor Flight has grown from three flights per year to seven. Honor Flight is a family affair for Welser and his wife, Susan, who serves as the group’s veteran coordinator.
The local chapter has been used as a model by other Honor Flight programs in Central Florida.
The veterans’ trip costs are made possible by donations and fundraising events. Guardians are asked to pay for their own airfare and to commit to a long day escorting the vets. For them, it is well worth it.
CLICK HERE TO SEE THE CENTRAL FLORIDA HUMANITARIAN ALUMNI
ABOUT THE 2015 CENTRAL FLORIDA HUMANITARIAN AWARDS
The Central Florida Humanitarian Awards were created to recognize outstanding individuals and organizations that dedicate their Time, Talent or Treasure to help people in need locally – and around the world.
This year, deserving humanitarians will be honored during the Gala, which will be held Thursday, Nov. 5 at the Hilton Melbourne Rialto Place, with the festivities beginning at 6 p.m.
“Over the years, our editorial team has had the distinct honor and pleasure of identifying and featuring the many members of our community who give back so much and are dedicated to reaching out and helping others, here and throughout the world, in a multitude of ways,” said Maverick Multimedia Editor-In-Chief Dr. Jim Palermo.
“We remain firmly committed to identifying and telling those stories and providing a timely media platform to recognize Space Coast and Central Florida residents’ altruistic contributions on a regular basis in our magazines, as well as SpaceCoastDaily.com,” said Dr. Palermo.
This inspiring and compelling event is sponsored by M.H. Williams Construction, Brighthouse Networks, Health First, Clear Choice Health Care, First Choice Medical Group, Dr. Mark Pinsky, SOAR, Knudson Brain & Spine Law Injury Office, Florida Pain Institute, Sangiv Patel, DDS, PA, Brevard Geriatrics, Space Coast Medicine & Active Living magazine and SpaceCoastDaily.com
For more information or to make a nomination for the Central Florida Humanitarians call 321-323-4460 or e-mail MaverickMultiMedia@gmail.com
BELOW MAP: The 2015 Central Florida Humanitarian Awards will take place Thursday, Nov. 5, at the Hilton Melbourne Rialto Place, located at 200 Rialto Place in Melbourne, Florida.
