Honor Flight is an organization that raises money for veterans in the local area from World War II as well as the Korean and Vietnam Wars to fly to Washington D.C., where they are welcomed by members of the national and state legislatures and taken to visit their respective memorials. When they arrive home, the veterans are thanked for their service at a rally.
The SGA senate initiative was started by Jordan Forrest, a sophomore member of the Engineering Senate and is co-sponsored by SGA Speaker of Senate, Branden Greenberg. Forrest said she conceived this idea back in June of this year, and it has had tremendous 
success thus far.
“We had an organization similar to this back in my hometown, Columbia, Missouri, and it was something I was passionate about in high school,” Forrest said. “When I came here for school I wanted to find a hub and learned that the only Honor Flight organization left in Alabama is actually located in Tuscaloosa.”
Forrest said she decided to 
create this initiative so the organization could avoid the same fate as the three former Honor Flight organizations in the state of Alabama, which have closed due to lack of funding.
Monday, Nov. 10, a Wall of Remembrance was set up on the Quad where students could write down the names of loved ones currently in the armed forces or who formerly served as a way to honor them. Nearby was a fundraiser tent where students and faculty members could donate directly to the SGA Honor Flight Program. Monday alone, $5,000 was raised. Among the visitors and promoters of the Honor Flight Program were university president Judy Bonner, U.S representative Spence Bachus and veterans who have participated in one of the West Alabama Honor Flights.
One of the veterans was Al Dupont, who served during the D-Day invasion of World War II. He said he was extremely grateful to see how many students donated money and got involved with the event on the Quad.
Ellie Graff, a freshman majoring in business and fashion retail, said she is extremely proud to attend a school where awareness and support for veterans are being raised on campus.
“My dad was a fighter pilot in the Air Force, and growing up, I saw firsthand how often veterans get mistreated when they have made a huge sacrifice for our country, many of them the ultimate sacrifice,” said Graff. “Raising money is a great way that we as college students can do our part in thanking and taking care of our country’s heroes.”
The SGA is encouraging sponsors for the initiative and have created three levels of sponsorship for the organization. Its goal is to raise $80,000 throughout the school year to send 170 local veterans on an Honor Flight.
For more information, visit the UA SGA Honor Flight Funding Initiative page on Facebook for updates on fundraising and events going on around campus.
