BLOOMINGTON - Jill Henry visited the national World War II memorial when it opened in 2004. She remembers sons pushing their fathers in wheelchairs, showing them the engraved monument.

Two weeks ago, she saw it with her father, Loyde Henry of Bloomington.

He was one of 20 veterans on an "honor flight" that included a 93-year-old man dressed in his original uniform.

"I didn't know what to do or say," Loyde Henry said, recalling the respect and appreciation shown during a day-long tribute coordinated by Honor Flight Chicago.

Daughter Jill, herself a 20-year Army veteran who served in Desert Storm in 1991, volunteered to help her father and others.

She is a registered nurse in Peoria who retired as a lieutenant colonel in 1993.

"This means more to them than we realize," she said. "It's something I wouldn't miss."

Her father, healthy and ambulatory, is luckier than many. Some, now older than 80, needed wheelchairs, oxygen or special health accommodations to make the trip.

"How meaningful it is to veterans that people still remember and appreciate them 60 years later," Jill Henry said.

'A lump in my throat'

Loyde Henry 83, lives at Westminster Village. He served in the Pacific Theater in 1946-47 in the Signal Corps.

The one-day trip included visits to several war memorials and a tour of famous sites.

Jill was surprised at the details veterans remembered from

years ago. "There are some things you just don't forget," they told her.

The 15-hour trip left the group tired when the plane returned to Chicago.

"I thought we were home and it was over," said Loyde, but the group was greeted by an honor guard and hundreds of signs reading "Welcome home" and "Thank you."

The honorees walked though a tunnel of flags. "People on either side were shaking my hand," Loyde Henry said.

Hundreds of relatives and friends, secretly contacted by the Honor Flight group, turned out for the welcome-home party at the airport.

"I already had a lump in my throat," said Jill.

'A day of tribute'

At the moment, Honor Flights are restricted to veterans of World War II.

Once all those veterans have had the opportunity, the group hopes to open the program to veterans from the Korean and Vietnam wars.

Honor Flight was founded by Earl Morse, a physician's assistant in Ohio and a pilot. In 2004, he flew one of his WW II patients to see the Army memorial in Washington, D.C.

The soldier responded to Morse's gift with tears. Morse founded the nonprofit Honor Flight Network in 2005.

Since then, hundreds of veterans from across the country traveled free to visit the memorials.

The group accepts donations - each trip costs $40,000 - but they won't take money from World War II veterans.

"Earl Morse believes they have already given enough," Jill explained.

"The more you can help, the more flights there can be," said Mary Pettinato, Honor Flight Chicago vice president.

"It is a day of tribute. Each salute, each thank-you and each small kindness will be remembered by these men and women for the rest of their lives."

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Honor Flights

What: The nonprofit organization honors America's veterans by flying them to Washington, D.C., to visit and reflect at memorials. The first flight, in 2005, involved 12 veterans. More recent flights have involved up to 120 veterans.

What's Next: Flights planned for August and September are filled. Once all World War II veterans have had the opportunity, other veterans are expected to have the same opportunity.

How to participate: Apply at www.honorflightchicago.org/ or call (773) 227-VETS or (773) 227-8387. Completed applications can be faxed to (773) 278- 7724, or mailed to Honor Flight Chicago, Attn: Veteran Application, 2001 W. Churchill St., Chicago, IL 60647.

How to help

The cost of each flight is about $40,000.

To contribute or volunteer, visit www.honorflightchicago.org or call (773) 227-VETS or (773) 227-8387.