Dear Vietnam Veteran,

I would like to start by first saying welcome home! I know that your welcome home after the Vietnam War was nothing like it should have been and you were not treated with the respect and gratitude you and your fellow servicemen and women deserved.

My name is Chandler and I am a senior in high school with college closing in. Going off to college as an 18 year old is scary enough—for me to imagine going to war at that age makes me nervous. I couldn’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like for you to be the same age (or maybe even younger than I am now) and sent off to fight for our country. I also understand you might not have had much of a choice in going off to war; however, I am grateful for your commitment, and bravery in fighting for yourself and for the people you have never even met.

When I was in eighth grade I got to visit Washington D.C. and see the War Memorials including the Vietnam Memorial. Even as an eighth grader who didn’t know much about history I understood the seriousness and sadness that the memorial shows and since it had that impact on me I can’t imagine the type of impact it had on you.

I am thankful for all veterans, but especially for you and all others who served in Vietnam. I believe you and your fellow servicemen and women had the hardest and saddest experience. You didn’t receive the welcome home you deserved; instead, you were greeted with angry friends, family, and strangers who no longer wanted to talk to you or show you the respect and gratitude you deserved.

I want to say I am truly thankful for you and what you have done for this country. Your service does not go unnoticed and I hope as soon as you step off the plane back home you receive the welcome home you so greatly deserved all of these years ago.

I hope the Honor Flight is an experience you will forever remember. Welcome home!

Sincerely, Chandler