Veterans Honor Flight of Southern Illinois will continue the tradition of a fall mission with Flight 15 on Tuesday, September 16, 2025. Mission 15 is expected to take 87 Veterans and their Guardians to Washington D.C. The group's 14th Mission is Tuesday, May 6, 2025. "We have been so blessed to be able to continue this mission," Veterans Honor Flight of Southern Illinois Chairman Bryan Questelle said, "We have Veterans waiting to go, and we want to continue the mission until every single Veteran in Southern Illinois has been honored." Veterans wishing to participate in Honor Flight must register online at www.veteranshonorflight.org or mail in an application. Applications received by May 16, 2025 will be considered for Mission 15. Honor Flight is provided completely free to eve [...Read more]

Gary Nelson of McLeansboro joined the US Army in February of 1968 to serve his country. Eventually deployed to fight in Vietnam, Nelson was honorably discharged in 1971 and returned to McLeansboro. Proud of his service, he applied to fly with Veterans Honor Flight in 2018. Diagnosed with terminal cancer, Nelson was overjoyed in February 2024 when he received the call to fly as an Honored Veteran with Veterans Honor Flight. Mission 12 departed early in the morning on May 7, 2024 with Nelson onboard. After a long day in Washington DC, stopping eight times to visit memorials and Arlington National Cemetery, Nelson returned with his flight to Marion to a hero’s welcome. Nelson returned home, reflecting on his Honor Flight experience and felt he must do something to help other Veterans [...Read more]

During the Welcome Home Celebration for Mission 13, which transported 89 honored Veterans to D.C., the Board of Directors of Veterans Honor Flight of Southern Illinois announced the mission will continue in the Spring. "We continue to get applications, and the mission is not over," said Bryan Questelle, Chairman. "As long as we have Veterans to honor, and the funding to do it, we're going back." Questelle said Mission 14 is planned for Tuesday, May 6, 2025, continuing the history of the organization operating one spring and one fall mission per year. Veterans Honor Flight of Southern Illinois has now flown over 1,000 Veterans from all across Southern Illinois and the surrounding area. Flights are completely free to Veterans and are provided completely by donations to the non-profit o [...Read more]