Ossining Veteran Goes to DC on Hudson Valley Honor Flight

Ossining resident, Army veteran, 92-year-old Victor Paolantonio was one of several veterans who traveled to Washington DC on the Oct. 18 Honor Flight.

Hudson Valley Honor Flight, a non-profit organization created to honor America’s World War II veterans for all their sacrifices, is a chapter of the National Honor Flight Network and serves veterans in Orange, Ulster, Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, Sullivan and Pike Counties.

“We transport our World War II heroes whose average age is 90-plus years old, to Washington, D.C. at no cost to them so they can visit and reflect at the WWII Memorial and at the Iwo Jima Memorial,” said HVHF Executive Director Becky Boone. “For what they sacrificed and for all they have given to us, the Honor Flights are a small token of our appreciation.”

HVHF takes off several times a year out of Stewart International Airport and Westchester County Airport. The daylong trip includes receptions, tours, and watching the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington Cemetery.

Putnam County Executive MaryEllen Odell was Paolantonio’s escort. It’s the third HVHF trip she’s taken.

“Spending the day with Victor was an absolute delight,” said Odell in a press release. “He was so thrilled to be going on this trip. These elderly veterans certainly deserve the attention and adulation they get on an Honor Flight.”

According to Odell’s office:

Upon his return, Paolantonio told Emily, his wife of 62 years, that the outing was “the best day of his life.”

Paolantonio, who since Labor Day weekend has resided at the New York State Veterans Home at Montrose, told Emily how thrilling it was to have a motorcade accompany the buses of veterans and to have people lining the streets waving flags as they passed by.

“Vic just breaks down into a flood of tears whenever he talks about it,” she said.

Emily said talking about his experiences as an Army Corporal in WWII was something Paolantonio never did, not even with her. It wasn’t until his granddaughter approached him about a school homework assignment that he finally began to discuss the subject.

“I learned about his war experiences as he talked with our granddaughter,” she said.

PHOTO: Former Sen. Bob Dole, Yorktown Councilman Dr. Terrence Murphy, and County Executive MaryEllen Odell gather around Army Veteran Victor Paolantonio in Washington, D. C. Photo/courtesy Putnam County Executive’s Office