Vietnam veteran Mike White of Elbridge flew Mission 21 in 2024. He passed away on January 15.
As a member of the U.S. Navy from 1966-1969, he served on the USS Ticonderoga. His family selected Honor Flight Syracuse to be the recipient of memorial gifts.  We are grateful for his service and for these words, shared by e-mail with us, from Mike’s stepdaughter Molly Wallace:

“I have to say, the reason we chose Honor Flight for donations is because Mike had such a profoundly positive experience on his flight. Mike was always so proud of his Navy service during the Vietnam War. He mentioned in the past that members of the military didn’t always receive the warmest welcome upon their return. I believe the Honor Flight gave Mike a sense of recognition and pride that made a lasting impact on him. And being amongst other veterans was so powerful- he felt a real camaraderie during the trip.” 

“We are especially grateful to Mike’s HFS chaperone (Angelo Testani), who gave him 5-star treatment throughout the trip. I would love for him to know how much it meant to Mike to be taken care of like that.” 

“I’m sharing two pics as examples of how proud Mike was to be a part of HFS…the Mission 21 book was proudly displayed on the coffee table, and he even had his name badge hanging on the wall.” 

“Our family often remarks about how incredibly impressive the whole HFS operation was. Please share all these remarks with the volunteers- you all do such an amazing job!”