Latest / WIXN AM 1460 - Shaw Local Radio / Talk Line: Debbie Bay talks Quad Cities Honor Flight Pancake Breakfast

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Talk Line: Debbie Bay talks Quad Cities Honor Flight Pancake Breakfast · WIXN AM 1460 - Shaw Local Radio

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  Speaker 1: It's eight thirty five on your Friday morning, and it's
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  Speaker 1: time for more talk line and this morning, I'm joined
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  Speaker 1: today by Debbie Bay from the Honor Flight of Quad
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  Speaker 1: Cities Lee County Committee. Debbie, how are you this morning?
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  Speaker 2: I'm doing great. Thank you so much for having me
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  Speaker 2: on this morning.
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  Speaker 1: I am so happy to have you on and for
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  Speaker 1: you to be sharing this important news and all the
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  Speaker 1: work that you do with Honor Flight. And before we
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  Speaker 1: talk about the event that you wanted to start with,
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  Speaker 1: for folks who are not familiar with Honor Flight, can
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  Speaker 1: you let them know a little bit about that.
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  Speaker 2: Oh? Absolutely so. We're the Lee County Committee, but we're
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  Speaker 2: under the Quad Cities Hub, the Honor Flight Hub, and
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  Speaker 2: we raise funds to send our area veterans to Washington,
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  Speaker 2: d C. For free. We pay for their flights, all
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  Speaker 2: of the bussing that we have to take them around
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  Speaker 2: to all of the monuments and the memorials that are
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  Speaker 2: in their honor in the area of the I'm losing
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  Speaker 2: my words today. Anyway, We've fund them for free. We
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  Speaker 2: try to get as many veterans as we can from
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  Speaker 2: World War Two. There aren't very many left or Korea
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  Speaker 2: and the Vietnam Wars priorities for those generations and any
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  Speaker 2: terminally ill veterans. But the great thing right now is
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  Speaker 2: we are taking up through nineteen ninety vets and we're
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  Speaker 2: talking Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Post Guard, and all
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  Speaker 2: of the reserves. And we're taking men and women. We
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  Speaker 2: have a big push for female vets. So we are
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  Speaker 2: hosting our pancake fundraiser to help pay for their flights
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  Speaker 2: for free to Washington, DC.
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  Speaker 1: And you know, this is such a wonderful program. I
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  Speaker 1: have the honor of getting to talk with some of
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  Speaker 1: the veterans who've been on these honor flights during my
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  Speaker 1: time as a reporter for Shaw Media, and I just
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  Speaker 1: think this is such a wonderful thing that gets done
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  Speaker 1: for these folks.
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  Speaker 2: It's really amazing. I've been on four flights myself as
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  Speaker 2: a guardian, and a guardian every veteran has a guardian
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  Speaker 2: assigned to them, so they have someone that can go
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  Speaker 2: with them, help them along, ask questions, talk about their
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  Speaker 2: time in their service. But also if there are any
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  Speaker 2: veterans who need assistance or a wheelchair, we're able to
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  Speaker 2: help them along. So you're not going alone. You don't
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  Speaker 2: have to pick someone to go with. But the stories
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  Speaker 2: that I've been told from these men and women are
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  Speaker 2: just amazing. And the pride they have in serving the country,
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  Speaker 2: it goes on throughout their entire lifetime. But the pride
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  Speaker 2: of the citizens that see them on these tours and
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  Speaker 2: come up and shake their hands and thank them for
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  Speaker 2: their service, it's so amazing. And especially for our Vietnam
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  Speaker 2: vets who didn't get that welcome home, they get that
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  Speaker 2: true welcome home. It's it's an amazing thing to be
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  Speaker 2: a part of.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, it really is. It's it's an it's an
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  Speaker 1: emotionally positive thing, and you know, the just the feeling
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  Speaker 1: they get afterwards, and like you said that, you know,
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  Speaker 1: especially for those Vietnam veterans that welcome home that they
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  Speaker 1: didn't get, and and just getting to feel that connection
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  Speaker 1: with our nation and that you know, gratitude of service.
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  Speaker 1: You know, it's it's just something that can hardly really
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  Speaker 1: be put into words, and there's nothing quite unlike it.
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  Speaker 1: And as you said, you guys, are you know, raising
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  Speaker 1: some funds through this through a special pancake breakfast this Sunday, right, Yes.
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  Speaker 2: So Sunday from seven thirty to eleven thirty in the morning.
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  Speaker 2: Of course, we are at the Dixon VSW and it's
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  Speaker 2: a good will donation, so come and give what you
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  Speaker 2: can and we'll have pancakes, sausages, eggs, we have juice
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  Speaker 2: and coffee of course, and then of course you have
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  Speaker 2: Camerado sitting with everyone and visiting. We should have some
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  Speaker 2: fund raising raffles also. It's just a really great time
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  Speaker 2: to get together and celebrate rate our veterans, and all
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  Speaker 2: the funds will go towards the next Dounter flight.
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  Speaker 1: That's absolutely wonderful. You know, there's nothing like being able
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  Speaker 1: to support our veterans in such a way, but to
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  Speaker 1: do it with some good food and some good people
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  Speaker 1: is really just a win win for everybody in my opinion.
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  Speaker 2: Yes, I agree to. It's a great time and we
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  Speaker 2: have so many veterans that come. It's not just everyone
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  Speaker 2: else donating money. But you could come. If you have
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  Speaker 2: not been on a flight and you're interested, come and
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  Speaker 2: talk to the veterans that have been on the flight,
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  Speaker 2: talk to us on the committee and other guardians will
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  Speaker 2: come and we can guide you in the right direction
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  Speaker 2: for applications and give you answer any questions that you
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  Speaker 2: might have it's an amazing trip as a guardian, and
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  Speaker 2: it's it's even better for the veterans.
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  Speaker 1: That's such a great point to bring up because not
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  Speaker 1: only can you know, you get involved by going to
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  Speaker 1: the pancake breakfast and donating to help make this happen,
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  Speaker 1: but for people who really want to, you know, be
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  Speaker 1: boots on the ground, yeah you can. You can apply
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  Speaker 1: to be a guardian and to spend that that time.
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  Speaker 1: You know, with these folks, it's not just a good
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  Speaker 1: feeling for you, it means so much to.
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  Speaker 2: Them, absolutely, and we will have application forms available on Sunday.
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  Speaker 2: But you can also go online to Honor Flight qc
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  Speaker 2: dot org. You can just type in Honor Flight of
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  Speaker 2: the Quad Cities and it'll it'll lead you there and
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  Speaker 2: on their website they list all the information that you
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  Speaker 2: would like know about the Honor Flight and then it
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  Speaker 2: gives links to applications that you can do online. If
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  Speaker 2: you aren't computer knowledgeable, there is a phone number you
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  Speaker 2: can call. It's five six three three eight eight three
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  Speaker 2: five nine two and that the Honor Flight office and
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  Speaker 2: they can guide you in the right direction too. I
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  Speaker 2: do have to say to be on the trip no
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  Speaker 2: matter if you are a guardian, or if you are
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  Speaker 2: a veteran, you have to have the updated driver's license,
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  Speaker 2: the TSA approved with a gold star or a current passport,
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  Speaker 2: and then veterans will need their DD two fourteen forms
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  Speaker 2: for their application. So just two little pieces of information
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  Speaker 2: that you have to have.
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  Speaker 1: Well, there you go, folks. So many ways to get
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  Speaker 1: to get involved, no excuse. Now's the time. If you've
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  Speaker 1: ever been curious about this, or you've wanted to do
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  Speaker 1: some for our veterans but didn't know how to do it,
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  Speaker 1: now you have your opportunity.
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  Speaker 2: And one more thing I'd like to say. It costs
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  Speaker 2: five hundred and fifty dollars for each vet. They go free,
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  Speaker 2: absolutely free, the flight, the bus ride, all the meals.
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  Speaker 2: Guardians pay four hundred dollars out of their own pocket,
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  Speaker 2: but it is tax deductible. So every penny that we raise,
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  Speaker 2: if you can only give a dollar or five dollars,
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  Speaker 2: it will add up and help pay for a veteran.
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  Speaker 1: That's right. There's so many of us out there. You
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  Speaker 1: don't have to be the person who sponsors one person entirely,
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  Speaker 1: although you can. If you've got it, you know we
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  Speaker 1: would take it. You can but the power of numbers
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  Speaker 1: people proceeds how much you know, you think you're able
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  Speaker 1: to do. If you're able to do a little, you're
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  Speaker 1: already doing a lot more than somebody who's not.
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  Speaker 2: Absolutely, and we appreciate it so much.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Debbie, thank you so much. Was there anything you
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  Speaker 1: wanted to share before I let you go?
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  Speaker 2: Just please come. If you can't come, you can always
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  Speaker 2: drop donations off at the VFW or check out everything
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  Speaker 2: online to see if you'd like to be a guardian.
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  Speaker 2: And if you have any veterans, you can contact them
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  Speaker 2: directly and guide them towards the website, or if you
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  Speaker 2: know any of us on the committee, me myself. We
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  Speaker 2: really want to get those veterums there, especially the women.
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  Speaker 2: We usually only have two to four women per flight,
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  Speaker 2: and we want to honor them just as much as
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  Speaker 2: the men. So we want everybody.
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  Speaker 1: To be able to go. There you go, you know
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  Speaker 1: they want everyone to go. But if you've got a mother,
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  Speaker 1: a sister and aunt that's served and could be on
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  Speaker 1: this trip, like, let them know, sign them up. They'll
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  Speaker 1: thank you for it.
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  Speaker 2: Sign them up absolutely.
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  Speaker 1: Debbie, thank you so much for coming on today and
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  Speaker 1: sharing this important information and all the work that you're
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  Speaker 1: doing there, it's it's just really great what you're doing
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  Speaker 1: for our veterans.
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  Speaker 2: Thank you. We have a great committee