Freedom Honor Flight 33 takes off Saturday, September 13, carrying Korean and Vietnam War veterans
2025 – Organizers are preparing for the 33rd Freedom Honor Flight on Saturday, which will honor veterans by flying them to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials built in their honor. Since the organization was founded in 2008, Freedom Honor Flight has flown more than 3,000 veterans to our nation’s capital. The single-day itinerary includes a welcome in Washington, D.C., and visits typically include the WWII Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and other sites via luxury motorcoaches.
Eager flyers include one Korean War era veteran and 100 veterans from the Vietnam War era. They fly for free, joined by volunteer guardians who pay their own way to assist the veterans on this “trip of a lifetime.”
The public is welcome at the morning sendoff and evening welcome-home ceremonies. All ground activities are held at Colgan Air, Hangar 4, La Crosse Airport. Ample parking and a shuttle service are available.
For the morning sendoff, hangar doors open at 5:30 a.m. A brief ceremony at approximately 6:15 a.m. precedes the American Airlines charter flight, set to depart at 6:50 a.m. The popular welcome-home ceremony features the UWL Screaming Eagles Marching Band. Hangar doors open at 7:30 p.m. The flight is expected to return between 9 and 10 p.m.
Freedom Honor Flight relies solely on the public’s generosity and urgently needs help to continue operating these flights. “We are incredibly grateful for the support which has kept us going for the past 17 years. But the reality is, we won’t be able to finish our mission of flying all veterans on our waitlist without more funds. We encourage the public to visit our website, freedomhonorflight.org, to make a donation today,” said Freedom Honor Flight Board President Pat Stephens.
Freedom honor flight launches annual icon sale at Festival Foods
2025 — Freedom Honor Flight has partnered with La Crosse-area Festival Foods stores for its annual icon sale, providing a key opportunity for the community to support the organization’s mission of flying veterans to Washington, D.C. to see the memorials built in their honor. The icons will be available for purchase from Sept. 1-15.
Community members can round up their bill or buy a $1 or $5 icon at the register to help send a veteran on a “trip of a lifetime.” The icons are available at the following Festival Foods locations:
- La Crosse Village
- La Crosse Copeland
- Holmen
- Onalaska
“Every dollar helps and goes directly to supporting our veterans,” said Pat Stephens, Freedom Honor Flight board president. “We are so appreciative of the public’s support over the last 17 years, but the reality is, we are at a critical point for our organization. We still have more than 450 veterans on a wait list for a flight, and we want to give them the same opportunity as the more than 3,000 veterans that we’ve already flown.”
With a rise in flight costs and diminishing funds, Freedom Honor Flight’s ability to honor its waitlist of veterans is in jeopardy. Your donations are needed now more than ever to ensure more veterans can be flown.
To donate to Freedom Honor Flight, visit freedomhonorflight.org/donate, click on the QR code or mail donations to:
Freedom Honor Flight
P.O. Box 505
La Crosse, WI
54602-0505
Freedom Honor Flight announces fall 2025 flight date
Freedom Honor Flight will make its 33rd trip to Washington D.C. on Saturday, September 13, 2025, flying veterans to see the memorials built in their honor.
Since the organization was founded in 2008, Freedom Honor Flight has flown more than 3,000 veterans to our nation’s capital. The organization is currently flying veterans of WWII, Korea and Vietnam with the majority of those veterans coming from the Vietnam era. The single-day itinerary includes a welcome in Washington, D.C., and visits typically include the WWII Memorial, the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, the National 9/11 Pentagon Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and other sites via luxury motorcoaches.
More than 500 veterans are on a waitlist to fly from La Crosse. Freedom Honor Flight receives no government funding and relies on individual donors and organizations to continue its mission. Each flight costs around $140,000. “While we have extremely generous donors, with rising costs and inflation, we’ll need increased support from the community in order to continue operating these flights,” said Freedom Honor Flight Board President Pat Stephens.
You can donate here.
Join the Memorial March 2025 to raise funds for Freedom Honor Flight
We’re excited to share news of an upcoming community event that will directly benefit Freedom Honor Flight! The Driftless CrossFit Memorial March 2025 is a dedicated community fitness fundraiser designed to honor our heroes and provide crucial support for our mission.
Mark your calendars! This inspiring event will take place on Saturday, May 24th at 9:30 a.m. Participants should gather at Driftless CrossFit, located at N6172 Cty Rd. XX in Onalaska, which will serve as both the starting and finishing point for the 5-mile run, walk or ruck along the beautiful Halfway Creek Trail. Join fellow community members as they participate in remembrance and contribute to taking more veterans to Washington, D.C., to see the memorials built in their honor.
Your participation or support helps us continue providing these life-changing trips at no cost to our deserving veterans. We hope to see you there!
Learn about Freedom Honor Flight at free Sparta event
The Sparta Free Library is hosting an event to educate the public about Freedom Honor Flight. Past President of Freedom Honor Flight, Bill Hoel, will be presenting the history of the organization and its impact on veterans. Bill has been a member of the Board of Directors since the group’s beginning and has gone on several of its 32 flights. Attendees will learn what an honor flight is like from an expert.
The event will take place on Monday, June 16th at 5:30 p.m. at the Sparta Free Library, located at 124 W. Main St.
Everyone is welcome to attend!
