“As we were getting ready to go to the plane, here comes an Honor Guard, all dressed up, with the flags. I said ‘this is for us?’ . . . And people just clapping, shaking hands, giving high fives. Just showing all appreciation.”
~ Robert Archer, Decatur Commons Senior resident and US Air Force Veteran
Just before Veterans Day, we sat down with Decatur Commons Senior resident Robert Archer, a Vietnam-era Air Force veteran who recently participated in the Honor Flight program.
A unique talent led to a fascinating military service role.
Mr. Archer participated in ROTC in high school and was a stand-out in basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas, where he was eventually assigned in 1965. Robert had been studying photography in college, so while he was first assigned to maintenance after basic training, he studied the details of military photography process and equipment – “Back then we used that 4×5 Graphic.; that’s that big camera. So when you took a picture, you’d have to pull that slide in.” Robert passed the test to join the base photography lab and was on call for any photographic needs, capturing daily activities or visits from dignitaries and even an occasional call to document events in a top-secret facility.
Soon, Mr. Archer was assigned as the personal photographer for Major General Mooney. In that role he photographed and talked with troops returning from Vietnam, covered special events, photographed soldiers in action in the obstacle course training at the base, and even was in the room alongside the Major General during Vietnam war strategy sessions. His war-time orders to deploy to Ho Chi Minh (formerly known as Saigon) were revised due to a serious back injury, and Mr. Archer was honorably discharged from the Air Force a few years later.
Long-delayed thanks for service.
Honor Flight Southern Nevada is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to honor US veterans of World War II, Korea and the Vietnam War by flying them to Washington D.C., completely free of charge. Once in D.C., the veterans can visit the memorials that stand in their honor and serve as a tribute to their sacrifice.
Mr. Archer’s Honor Flight experience all started with a routine check-in with Wanda McFadden, his Resident Services Coordinator at Decatur Commons Senior. “I was in the office with Wanda, and she started telling me about the Honor Flight and asked me if I’d be interested. And I said yeah of course! She submitted my name in August, and the Honor Flight was in October.” Mr. Archer was one of 75 local veterans on the Honor Flight, and he was impressed by the thoughtful, personal care each veteran received from Honor Flight’s all-volunteer team.
Particularly touching for veterans of Mr. Archer’s era was the constant appreciation and thanks expressed to the group during their trip. Public opinion of the Vietnam war – and by extension, service members – was often negative. Mr. Archer reflected, “I’ll tell you the sad part about it. When I got out, there was no recognition, not a word. They didn’t say thank you for your service.” For Mr. Archer’s group of Korean War and Vietnam War veterans the Honor Flight program is both a truly special trip to visit the war memorials in Washington, D.C. and a long-delayed public expression of appreciation for their military service.
This is for us?
The Honor Flight veterans departed from the Henderson Airport, on Southwest Airlines. “The veterans are on one side of the plane, and regular passengers on the other side. They give you a special blue shirt and red cap so we stand out. As we were getting ready to go to the plane, here comes an Honor Guard [a ceremonial group of current service members], all dressed up, with the flags. I said, ‘this is for us?’ When we get to Washington, . . . I’m walking from the plane, and I hear all this noise. . . and another Honor Guard is there! Standing at attention. And people just clapping, shaking hands, giving high fives. Just showing all appreciation.”
The next day, the group visited all the D.C. memorials, with a knowledgeable guide on hand to share the history of each site, and the highly personal care continued. “Then we get to [the next] destination, there’s ANOTHER group of Honor Guardians [civilian volunteers] assigned to each person!” One site that really stood out for Mr. Archer was the Arlington National Cemetery, where the group got to see the honor guard and the changing of the wreath, and visited the grave of highly decorated WWII veteran Audie Murphy. “After going to the cemetery, we went to the Vietnam Wall. That is so well done; they had the names, and the location of all the people who died.”
Perhaps just as special as the tour was time spent in community with other veterans. “We couldn’t stop talking – a lot of the guys were talking about their time. Everyone had different assignments and shared what they went through.”
“Finally, coming back to the Vegas airport, it was another big salute. Another Honor Guard. And another welcoming – there must have been 1,000 people welcoming us!”
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Mr. Archer was kind enough to share several of his personal photos from the trip.
