During a press conference this morning, American 1 Credit Union announced its Silver Star Sponsorship of the April 21 Talons Out Honor Flight. Talons Out is a 501(c)(3) and a regional hub of the national non-profit organization Honor Flight. This group of dedicated volunteers strives to honor our veterans with an all-expense paid trip to our nation’s capital, where they are honored with a tour of our nations monuments built in their honor.
Bobbie Bradley, President of Talons Out shared that their primary focus is serving World War II Veterans, “ When we started our journey four short years ago, of the 16 million that served in World War II, less than 2 million remained and we were losing them at a rate of 1,000 per day. Today, less than 500,000 remain and we have lost so many that we are losing them at about 387 vets every day. Our goal is to continue this mission and serve veterans from other wars as well.”
“When we first heard of the Honor Flight movement, we immediately knew that this was an effort we wanted to be part of,” shared Laura Pryor, VP of Marketing & Communications for American 1. “This sponsorship represents American 1’s desire to celebrate our veterans and the sacrifices they made for our country. We are beyond thrilled to be working with Talons Out and giving veterans the honor they deserve.”
American 1 would like to involve the community as much as possible in the coming weeks before the flight as well as on the actual flight date, April 21. On Sunday March 18th, American 1 is hosting a free showing of Mission Accomplished: Talons Out Honor Flight at the Michigan Theatre in downtown Jackson at 3pm. The film, created by WGVU/PBS, showcases the efforts put forth by Talons Out and follows along on an actual Honor Flight.
The community is also invited to join American 1 and Talons Out for a Welcome Home Party at Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo the night of April 21. The evening will be one of celebration as the crowd welcomes home the vets from their whirlwind trip to Washington, D.C.
To find out more information about applying for the Talons Out Honor Flight, please visit the Talons Out website, talonsouthonorflight.org, or visit American 1’s website at www.american1cu.org/honor-flight for more information regarding the free showing of Mission Accomplished: Talons Out Honor Flight or the Welcome Home Party.
Source: PRESS RELEASE
