Bryan Painter

WASHINGTON — In the six years that the Oklahoma Honor Flights program brought World War II veterans here to see their memorial, we met dozens of men who had served in some of the biggest battles of the war.

They were sailors and pilots, infantrymen and gunners who were at Pearl Harbor, Normandy, the Battle of the Bulge and Iwo Jima.

There were other men and women who never saw battle, some who remained in the States after basic training and made their contributions to the war effort in other ways.

No matter their military branch or the theater they were assigned to during the war, they had many common traits — humility, graciousness and gratitude, among them.

Before they lived through the war, they lived through the Great Depression. No one had ever given them anything. When the Honor Flights program gave them an all-expenses-paid trip to see the World War II Memorial and others in Washington, they couldn’t say enough about how honored they felt.

The first Honor Flight from Oklahoma arrived in Washington in May 2010. The 24th and final one was last week. In six years, the privately funded program run by dedicated volunteers brought 2,055 veterans to Washington. Most were World War II veterans because that was the population for which the program was created, but an increasing number of Korean and Vietnam War veterans participated.

The planning and logistics for each trip had to be daunting. Each veteran had to be accompanied by a “guardian,” who had to be trained. Wheelchairs had to be loaded, meals had to be provided, police escorts had to be arranged. And what if it rained? Loads of plastic ponchos.

It rained, more than once. There were hot, muggy days, as well, and cold, windy ones.

The veterans never complained. About anything.

We covered many of the flights — the first and last and several in between here in Washington, and some in Oklahoma City, as the veterans prepared to leave on their flight.

We could say that talking to the veterans and family members and organizers was a highlight of our careers. But that would be selling it short. It was a highlight of our lives.

We each have some personal memories.

A lot of times in reflecting on an experience, I rely on my memory. When asked to describe my Oklahoma Honor Flights experiences, I skipped the mind and went straight to the heart and here’s what I found: Goose bumps and tears. Clinched jaws and lumps in the throat. Strained voices and firm pats on the back.

That’s not only describing the veterans, that’s just about any and everyone who was blessed to be a part of or come in contact with the mission of the Oklahoma Honor Flights.

What stirs these emotions? It wasn’t just seeing Preston Johnson’s artificial leg extending from the casual plaid summer shorts at 3:30 in the morning that gut punched me as we gathered for a June Honor Flights trip; it was knowing the story behind it.

“We were in France, and we were trying to take the hill away from the Germans. It was Jan. 23, 1945,” said Johnson, an Army veteran. “We trotted in there and didn’t know there was a minefield. I lost the lower part of my right leg.”

Johnson, of Midwest City, rather than ending the story with himself, recalled how a medic hurried over, knelt down and gave the soldier a shot of morphine. That medic turned around and didn’t cover much ground before stepping on a land mine. Another medic rushed to the aid of the first and also triggered an explosion.

Johnson gave his leg, but he wanted to