Honor Flight serves as a memorable tribute to Korean War veteran

"Salute to veterans."

The following is a brief description of an event that became a very important part of my life.

On Sept. 22, 2015 I was privileged to fly to Washington, D.C. as a member of the Honor Flight of West Central Florida. This was an all-expenses paid trip for veterans to honor our war service and see the different war memorials. What made this so special was the kindness of our guardians who paid all of our expenses and served as our guides.

My twin brother George and I served as Navy hospital corpsmen during the Korean War. In 1952, he was wounded and disabled in an explosion while attending an injured Marine.

We lost a number of buddies who were killed in combat. As most people know, Korea was labeled the "Forgotten War."

This Honor Flight helped to erase the bad feeling I've had for 63 years that our servicemen weren't treated with respect or acknowledged for their sacrifice. This "don't care" attitude prevailed with our fellow veterans also during and after the Vietnam war.

Just recently, things have gotten better and our veterans are getting a measure of thanks from the public.

Another group called the American Gold Star Mothers should be honored for the ultimate sacrifice of losing sons and daughters in all the various wars.

Serving our country was a great honor. I was proud to serve with so many brave men and women.

Korea is a vibrant successful democracy today because of our effort. I remember the pride I felt coming home when our ship passed under the Golden Gate Bridge, to be home once again in the greatest country in the world.

God bless all of our veterans and God bless the United States.

Dr. Charles F. Hudson

Bradenton

This story was originally published November 11, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Honor Flight serves as a memorable tribute to Korean War veteran ."