QHonor Flight

Sometimes the best-laid plans grow into something much greater than ever imagined. Karen Mumford has learned that firsthand over the past decade.

She just wanted to take her grandfather to see the World War II monument in Washington, D.C. She never intended to start a nonprofit organization that flies dozens of veterans to the nation’s capital every year for a whirlwind tour of war memorials, presidential monuments, and the changing of the guard at Arlington National Cemetery.

That idea, with the help of her friend Chandra Kendall, plenty of hardworking volunteers, and generous donors, quickly blossomed into Coastal Georgia Honor Flight. Now in its 10th year, the 2023 edition is set to take off May 13 and will fly more than 50 military veterans along with guardians who act as chaperones to Washington, D.C., and back on a chartered flight, all in one day.

“I got started in it because I wanted my grandfather, who was in World War II, to see the World War II memorial,” Mumford says. “It has just grown and it means the world to those men and women.”

As she thought more about the trip for her grandfather, she realized there had to be others who wanted to tag along. As a hospice social worker, Mumford began finding other veterans, their families, and friends who were interested in being a part of the trip.

In the first year, Coastal Georgia Honor Flight partnered with Communities of Coastal Georgia Foundation to serve as the nonprofit to help make the trip a reality. By the next year, Coastal Georgia Honor Flight was its own nonprofit organization and part of the national Honor Flight Network, which includes 130 hubs in 44 states.

Mumford said it’s an honor for her to be a part of an organization that pays homage to American heroes and has enjoyed watching the local flight grow and expand. In the first year, the veterans mostly served in World War II. Today, a majority of the veterans on the flight served during Vietnam or Korea.

“It’s one of the most amazing things I’ve ever done,” she said.

The best part of the trip is the arrival back at Brunswick Golden Isles Airport in the evening, Mumford says. The Brunswick High School band comes to play patriotic tunes and the community comes out in droves to cheer on the veterans with posters, American flags and plenty of cheering.

“It’s an all-American homecoming,” Mumford says. People who want to come to cheer on the veterans upon their arrival should show up at Brunswick Golden Isles Airport at about 8:30 p.m. to be ready for the homecoming, she said.

“We need lots of support at the welcome that night,” Mumford says.

The program also needs donors and support of any kind. The flight is free for veterans and their guardians, making fundraising an important aspect of Coastal Georgia Honor Flight.

“We always need help,” Mumford says. “Whether it’s through volunteering time or making a donation, being a part of Coastal Georgia Honor Flight is truly time and money well spent.”

She hopes to see another great showing from the community on May 13 when the veterans return to Brunswick and to see the program continue to grow.

• Coastal Georgia’s Honor Flight trip will be held May 13. That evening the public is encouraged to come to the Brunswick-Golden Isles Airport, 295 Aviation Parkway, Brunswick to welcome the heroes home. Participants should arrive by 8:30 p.m. For more information, to apply as a volunteer or to make donations, go to the nonprofit organization’s website at CoastalGeorgiaHonorFlight.org.

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