They have been called the Greatest Generation or the G.I. Generation in books and on TV. They are the parents and grandparents of the Baby Boomers, and with each passing day there are fewer and fewer of them left to tell their stories.

They are the heroes of World War II and Ford Motor Company Fund, in partnership with the Honor Flight Network, is sponsoring Pride and Honor Flights for these military veterans to visit the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C.

Ford Motor Company
President and CEO
Alan Mulally Greets
WWII veteran Richard
Melcher at the airport
before the trip

“This is a small gesture in recognition of the service and bravery of these soldiers some 70 years ago,” said Jim Vella, president, Ford Motor Company Fund. “For many, this will be their first visit to the national memorial dedicated in their honor.”

The veterans and their guests received a festive send-off before their flight left Detroit Metropolitan Airport. Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally and other Ford employees were on hand to greet the veterans and thank them for their service.

"I think this is wonderful," said Jack Little, 86, a World War II Veteran who visited the memorial with his daughter Barbara Bowen. "I was in infantry combat - there's no word for it. I was a Prisoner of War for four months. It was miserable."

Upon their arrival at the World War II Memorial in Washington D.C. the veterans and their guests were welcomed by several members of Congress, including both of Michigan's U.S. Senators and Congressman John Dingell, the longest serving member of Congress and himself a WWII veteran. The veterans, who are all in their 80s and 90s, also received letters of appreciation from Ford employees and others.

A second flight for Kentucky veterans will take place on the 68th anniversary of D-Day – June 6, 2012.

This is just the latest chapter in Ford's long history of supporting veterans and military personnel. Ford’s relationship with the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) began in 1922, when Henry Ford organized a cross-country caravan of 50 Model T’s to take disabled veterans to their convention in San Francisco.

Since 1974, Ford Motor Company and Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services have provided more than $6 million to veterans’ organizations, and since 1996 Ford has donated 156 vehicles totaling approximately $4 million to the DAV Transportation Network. Each year Ford sponsors the DAV’s winter sports clinic and has supported the DAV’s youth scholarship volunteer program since 2000.

Ford Motor Company received the 2011 Secretary of Defense Employer Support Freedom Award in recognition of the support it provides its National Guard and Reserve employees.

To view more photos from the Pride and Honor Flight to the WWII Veterans Memorial, please click the link to our Ford in the Community page on flickr: www.flickr.com/photos/fordcommunity/sets/.