If you are a military veteran and you have the opportunity to take the Honor Flight, the Rev. Terry Krouskoupf wants you to take it.
“Pastor Terry,” to his friends, was on the Flight to Washington, D.C., on June 18. Like others who have had the experience, he said it was a trip of a lifetime.
Honor Flight Chicago (HFC) was founded in 2008 to recognize America’s senior war veterans by flying them to Washington, D.C., to tour the memorials built in their honor. The one-day, all-expense paid trip is filled with appreciation, tributes, memories, and gratitude.
To date, there have been 128 Flights, for more than 300,000 veterans.
“I am the Chaplain for American Legion Post 392 in Peotone,” Rev. Krouskoupf said, “and only one other veteran has gone on the Honor Flight.
“I wish many more would apply. They don’t know what they are missing. What an amazing trip!
“I have been to Washington, D.C., a few times. As a child, we went to see the sites. More recently was in the late ‘90s, until June 18.
“The sites on this trip included the Marine Memorial, which is one large statue! The Lincoln Memorial, World War II, the Korean Memorial and, of course, the Vietnam Memorial with the Wall. We also visited the Space Museum, where we saw the “Enola Gay.”
“My favorite memory (about the flight) was finding my Uncle Eugene’s name on the Korean Memorial. He was killed there in October 1950. I was given his name as my middle name.
“What surprised me about the entire trip was the dedication of all the volunteers that made our day a lasting memory – also, the reception we received when we returned to Midway Airport. Our return flight was delayed a bit because of weather. We finally departed at 9:30 p.m. Eastern. There were hundreds of cheering people despite being after 10 p.m. when we arrived at Midway.
My guardian was Michelle, and it was a pleasure to tour the sites with her.”
Peotone American Legion Auxiliary President Ann Nagel noted, “The neat thing is that one of our auxiliary members, Abby Jarchow, was one of the nurses on board his flight.”
Pastor Terry said there was no one else on the flight he previously knew, but he did make some new friends.
“One veteran in particular,” he said. “His daughter was his guardian. The funny part was she was always asking him, ‘Do you have your ID and your wallet?’ ‘Where’s your phone?’ It became a standard joke.”
Pastor Terry was one of more than nine million Americans who served in the military during the Vietnam War era (August 5, 1964 to May 7, 1975).
“I enlisted in the Navy in April 1969 and remained on active duty until my retirement in August of 1990 at Naval Air Station Glenview, Illinois,” he recalled.
“I was a helicopter aircrewman and logged 2,403 flight hours in the Sikorsky H3. I was assigned to several squadrons during my career and reached Petty Officer First Class, E6.”
He completed his Bachelor of Arts before he retired from the Navy.
“It was after I retired that God called me to serve, and I went to seminary and obtained my Master of Divinity from Chicago Theological Seminary in 1998 and was ordained June, 1999.
“I was called to serve Faith Church, which later merged with St. John and, after 19 years, I planned to retire from ministry. We moved to Manteno in 2017. Immanuel United Church of Christ in Peotone found out and asked me to serve them. I did pulpit supply first, but then they decided to call me to serve as the Settled Pastor August, 2020. We have grown, and I am still pastor of the church. Perhaps we are called for life.
“I also became a member of Legion Post 392 of Peotone in 2019 and am currently the Chaplain.
“They say behind every good man is a great woman. My wife, Joyce, has been supportive every step of my journey. My dad, Herman, was in the Navy during World War II, part of the ‘Greatest Generation.”’ He passed in 2016. My mom, Mary, just celebrated her 93rd birthday and lives with my sister, Tamra, in Ohio, where I grew up. My daughters are important to me, as well.
“I want to thank the members of Immanuel, too,” he added. “They have been wonderful and do a great job when it comes to doing God’s will.
“Finally, I would like to thank all those who make the Chicago Honor Flight a great success!”
Honor Flight Chicago is a 501(c)(3) organization and part of a nationwide network of Honor Flight hubs, each operating independently. Each Honor Flight day begins early, with veterans arriving at 4 a.m. at Chicago’s Midway International Airport. Then, for the next 16-plus hours, they are treated as heroes everywhere they go.
HFC is accepting applications from veterans of WWII, Korea, and Vietnam. An easy application form may be found on the website Honorflightchicago.org. For more information, call 773-227-VETS (8387); fax 773-289-0909, or by mail at 9701 W. Higgins Road, Suite 310, Rosemont, IL 60018-4703.