More than 6 million served in the Korean War.

Almost 9 million GIs were on active duty during the Vietnam War, from 1964 to 1973; 2,709,918 Americans actually served in Vietnam.

That’s 9.7 percent of their generation.

For nearly a decade, the Honor Flight program has made it possible for thousands of those veterans to visit the memorials to their personal sacrifices.

Locally, Ron Newsum heads a committee that has organized and carried out repeated Brushy Creek Area Honor Flights.

Another is about to take off from Fort Dodge Regional Airport in Fort Dodge.

They will include a woman who is 101 years old who is a World War II veteran. There are heroes from all walks of service, and a broadening spectrum of conflicts. And there aren’t many World War II veterans alive to board the next flight.

But then there’s Edna Maruska, a Navy veteran who used to live in Lake City, but who calls Carroll home now. She served from 1943-1945.

“I just thought it would be a good thing to do,” she has said about joining the WAVES, the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service.

She is an impressive example of the generation that was the first to be afforded these trips to the national’s capital, and she is a reminder that heroes some from all walks of life, cultural backgrounds, and genders.

As her generation wanes, it is the continuing success of the Honor Flights that has allowed the trips to be offered to younger veterans, including vets who served in Korea and Vietnam.

The continued support of donors, from individuals to service clubs, has meant that every deserving veteran who steps from the tarmac onto that jet for free.

In Washington, D.C., they will be faced with bittersweet memories of their service.

And when they return home, they will be welcomed with the open hearts of people who are truly grateful for their sacrifice.