A new team has taken over leadership of the Brushy Creek Area Honor Flight, and it plans to resume taking veterans to Washington, D.C., next spring.

This new board is led by Sara Murphy as president, Regina Rhea as vice president, Carmen Fielding as treasurer and Jim Wilkins as secretary.

Other board members are Alex Kennebeck, Merete Klocke, Josh Boehler, Bob Fort, John Hyink, Barb Runneberg and Sarah Rustvold, who is the director of aviation at Fort Dodge Regional Airport.

This group is taking over for the original Honor Flight board led by Ron Newsum. That board started the flights in 2010, then stepped aside after the May 7 flight. It conducted 27 flights over 15 years, taking about 3,700 veterans to see the nation’s war memorials.

The new board announced that it plans to have its first flight in May 2026.

“We are proud to serve our veterans one flight at a time,” the board said in a written announcement.

“We are dedicated in serving our veterans by bringing them to our nation’s capital in Washington, D.C., so they can see their memorials and finally say a long needed, proper goodbye to their comrades and loved ones who served with them and before them,” the board stated. “This gives them a peace that cannot be described, a peace they have longed for and for some, never knew they needed until they get to Washington, D.C. This is an unforgettable, honorable and emotional experience we are proud to give our veterans and have the opportunity to experience with them.”

The board is planning some new fundraisers including an Honor Flight Ball set for Nov. 15 at the Laramar Ballroom, 710 First Ave. N.

Donations and fundraisers remain essential because veterans travel on the flights for free.

Each flight begins early in the morning at Fort Dodge Regional Airport. The veterans, board members, other volunteers and a small group of medical personnel fly to Dulles International Airport in the Virginia suburbs of Washington. There, the group boards buses and heads into the capital.

The group visits the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam War Veterans Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, World War II Memorial, the Marine Corps War Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and the Air Force Memorial.

The flight then returns to Fort Dodge late the same night.

Veterans who served between 1941 and 1975 are eligible for Honor Flights.

The Brushy Creek Area Honor Flight is a nonprofit organization operated by volunteers.

Donations can be sent to:

Brushy Creek Area Honor Flight

P.O. Box 104

Fort Dodge, IA 50501