Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Quad City Forum, a weekly community service program
produced by iHeartMedia to look at the issues and opportunities
that exist in our community. Now here's your hosts for
Quad City Forum, Hot Luke and Denny Lynn Howe.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Steve Garreton Hub, director of Honor Flight to the Quad Cities,
talking to us today. And I'm surprised that he has
enough time to be able to do that because it's
going to be busy, busy, busy this year. More on
that in just a few minutes. But Stephen, if you
can just tell us a little bit about what the
Honor Flight is all about.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Sure, Well, first of all, we're honoring our veterans, and
right and right now we're taking we are taking applications
from veterans who serve before nineteen seventy five.
Speaker 4 (00:48):
Okay, we'll get other ones as we go along. We're
right now we're trying to pick up everybody for that
includes Vietnam and Kooy and World War Two and whatever
was in between. So we're trying to get all those
veterans and we're taking them to DC on a one
day flight. And Flight sixty two is coming up in
(01:08):
May and we're just getting we're putting, all the putting,
all the eyes and for us on all the t's
for that one. So we're getting ready on our sixty
second flight to DC and it should be fantastic.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
We're just looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (01:26):
Those guys will go there, they'll see the monuments, they'll
see some of the old equipment that they used to
use at the museum. They're just going to have a
good and we're going to feed them a lot.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Well they with all that they've gone through, that's certainly
deserving of that. Now, when we talk about sixty two flights,
I would think everybody from before nineteen seventy five knew
about this and has already gone on. But you probably
still will run run into this where a lot of
veterans say, no, no, no, I don't deserve that.
Speaker 4 (02:00):
Oh yeah, yeah, they're here. Oh some of it is
more important to me, and they did that, and I'm
I'm just not.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (02:07):
Veterans are the most humble people actually you'll meet. They're
they're very humble about what they did. Guys who have
the silver star, the bronze now, well, I you know
there was a mistake or something.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
Just very humble, except for me. Of course everybody else
is really um.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Well okay, so outside of it, and that we are
talking to the humble Steve Garrington, hub director at the
Honor Flight of the Quad Cities. If people want to
find out more, website to do just that.
Speaker 4 (02:42):
Honor Flight qc dot. You know, just just google Honor
Flight Quad Cities. You'll you'll get to US.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Okay, Honor Flight quad Cities. Just do a Google search
in that and you're good now, yes, And on that you.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
Will find applications of veterans and application since the guardians
and we would like to have a lot more guardians
people guardians up. The nice thing about a guardian who
doesn't know a veteran come in, he hasn't heard the
veterans story before. The veteran has already told that their
(03:16):
kids the story fifty seven times. They don't want to
hear it again. Their new guardian coming in says, hey,
tell me all the stories. And they make such good
new friends. And when people get in my age, you
got to make new friends because some of them are
going quick. So you like making new friends and that's great.
So we need people to sign up to be guardians.
(03:38):
And that's on that same website Google on a flight
quad Cities.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
All right, sounds good. Now when we talk about some
of the veterans too, this makes it seem like if
you were in action. Sometimes if you're a veteran but
you were state side, this is still a perfect opportunity
to head to DC.
Speaker 4 (03:57):
Absolutely, that doesn't matter if they, oh, we're at a
desk in you know, Fort Benning, or if they were
over in Germany or in Korea. You know, that's they're
still going to go with us. We're still just just
as long as they were a veteran before seventy five,
will will take them.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
There is one little problem though, Okay.
Speaker 4 (04:23):
The TSA, that's a Transportation Security agency, not at the
Salvation Army. The TSA requires the new real ID. We
have a star in the corner of your driver's license
to your ID card. So if you know a veteran,
tell them go get your real ID because you can't
(04:45):
fly without it. They're just not gonna let us take it.
And I don't want to have anybody show up at
the airport and say, well I don't have a real ID.
You can't even a passport. But the real idea is
what we'd really like to have every veteran. So if
you know a veteran, say, have you guys your real
idea yet? Go get it. And that's by the way,
I think it's different between Iowa and Illinois as to
(05:07):
what you have to take and give them, So you
got to call the driver's license bureau to find out
what you need. But the real idea is going to
become very important. We're just holding our breath that we
don't have any problems with that.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Well, it's still something to realize too that it's great
to update your license anyway. And while you're at it,
as people are listening to this today, for some people
they could have a passport but it's out of date.
So it certainly is a good idea to always update
those and make sure that you're ready to go. Because
it's the world we're living in right now. So you
(05:40):
can complain about it, but let's not complain. Get everything
updated so you're ready to go. And that would be
the similar thing. If people want to volunteer and be
a guardian, you've got to make sure you get all
this in order because the day of is too late
to be doing some of this stuff. There's quite a
lead time certainly is m h.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
It's hurry up and right to get it in there.
We'll call you.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
Well, it's going to be a busy it's going to
be a busy year in twenty twenty five because not
just one flight, or I would think sometimes it would
be two, but you've got three this year. You got three.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Three sister twos in three sixty four and the one
is in May and the other two are going to
be in the autumn, okay, and so we're looking forward
to doing that. It uh, there's good times. Spring is
hard to do in d C. They have a cherry
(06:33):
blossom festival and you can't hire a bus because all
of uses are taking tours on a turer bossom festival tours, right,
So it's really difficult. So we do one kind of
lateness springlets in May and then we do a couple
in the fall. And that's that's beginning to work out
pretty well well.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
And you know, we talk about how there can it
can DC can be tightened up and type security. Just
a few weeks ago when they had the joint to
speech to Congress, the whole place is on lockdown. So
it's not because people they want to make sure the
DC is safe and so you have to pick your time,
but it's still it's important. When we talk about some
(07:17):
of our veterans from before nineteen seventy five, the clock
is ticking. We want to make sure if they want
to get out there, they get out there. So the
first couple of steps, what should our veterans or our
veterans families start to do outside of making sure they
get the real ID and also update the passport. What's
the first couple of steps after that?
Speaker 4 (07:39):
Just get the application in first, and then what we'll
do is we take the guys who are before nineteen
seventy five, by the date that they apply, we'll call
them and we'll say are you available now? Since we're
going to have some people who may not be available,
we always call our things come up. So if we're
(08:00):
going to take eighty people on the flight, we'll call
one hundred and say are you available? Okay, and then well,
if if that what works out, well we'll send out
a letter to them and then they'll tell them all
the details what they need to do, what they need
to bring, dates and times and all that sort of stuff.
But we will call them when their turn comes up
and that's the that's and we'll probably say if you
(08:22):
have a.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
Real id, right, that'll be the first question. And then
after that then let's start. Let's start working on it.
Guardians have to be the same kind of a thing,
what kind of lead time along with you know, first off,
apply because there'll be some cost in that too.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
There will be that that helps pay free airplane. It's
not cheap during an airplane for a day, but they
all the all of the guardians pay four hundred dollars
to go. And now I have got many guardians, I
mean who have had such a wonderful time that they
have paid it three or four times to go on
on flights. Wow, they just have a great time. Some
(09:03):
of them take pictures and make up those little picture
books and give them to their veterans after them after
the flights over. They just they're just so wonderful. Some
of them write veterans to their house for Thanksgiving dinner.
I mean, it's just really really great. You mean, they
make a real, real good vacation and then the meeting
of new friends. So we're really happy and they'll be
(09:26):
We'll call them well ahead of time say are you
are you available and we need extra guardians because a
lot of people work and that they may not work
for them. You know, if I want right eighty guardians,
I better call one hundred and twenty.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Yeah, you got to make sure. It's like putting a
like a puzzle piece together. Not all of the parts
are going to work the first time. And when you
talked about some of the veterans how they've maybe told
stories to some of their family then getting a chance
to talk to some of the guardians, I would still
think Steve that some of the veterans still can be
tight lips. Sometimes they're not gonna talk. And it's a
(10:06):
great chance for that guardian to be able to help
that veteran come out of their show. Like you said,
you can you can start a life, even though it's
a little bit later in life. You can start a
lifetime friendship with this flight.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
It is that is probably one of the greater things
it comes out of the flight. I mean it's nice
for them to go into the memorial, but to really
make a true friend that's going to you know, meet
them and talk to them, listen to their stories. I mean,
a guardian is going to spend a whole day focusing
(10:41):
in on that veteran a whole day. The last time
I had somebody spend a whole day focusing on me
was my honeymoon.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Hey wait a minute, Steve, Now let's stop getting too
personal on that stuff.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
Okay, what it is, it's a day when somebody really
focuses in and this question and I want to hear
the story. Well what about this? Well what was that? Who?
Who's who did you get love letters from while you
were in the service besides your wife? You know, I
mean those those questions. They have wonderful questions, and they
get and the meant and what really happens In many
(11:16):
many cases, the the veteran will go back the guardian
will say, now, don't forget, You've told me some great stories,
but you need to go back to your family and
tell them the stories. And some families say, it's the
first time we heard these stories after they got back
from the And it's after they got back, so it's
(11:37):
a time when there's nobody to judge them. They're all
they're all with their all military bodies or with these
guardians who are eager to see them. They there's no
judgmental about it. They're just going to have a good
time and they can lie.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Well it's you know what, it's therapeutic.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
Well, they don't really lie, they just leave out parts
and stretch the others. You know, it's kind of gong.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
Effishent absolutely and a good time. Now, how many do
the guardians just meet the veteran that they're on just
on the flight that day, or is there a little
bit of lead time before the flight?
Speaker 4 (12:19):
There is ten days before we have a meeting for
all the veterans and their guardians, the chance they get
a chance to meet each other. We'll tell them a
little bit about this and we'll spend a little we'll
send the veterans home and then we'll talk to the
guardians and we'll give them some training. Things that they
(12:41):
may not think about, things that they have to do.
Speaker 5 (12:45):
We tell the people you.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Can't carry a purse because you want to have both
hands ready to catch a guardian in case he starts
to fall. You know, lots of little odds and ins
that will teach them, to help them have a really
wonderful day, help them with the question of questions you
might want to ask. Remember, if they get a bottle
of water, you need to unscrew it because with ours
lightis as long as guy made a hard time on
(13:07):
screwing a bottle of water exactly, I have it's a
hard time.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Well, you think about this. If it's a veteran before
nineteen seventy five, so that probably means that veteran most
cases is in their seventies at least.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
Yeah. Absolutely, they were eighties or.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Nineties exactly now. And for people that are now hang
on a second. Now, for people that are just tuning in,
Stephen Garrington, hub director Honor Flight at the Quad Cities
is talking to us. Now you go ahead, Steve, you
continue please.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
It's great.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
We do it.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
And of course they just need to go to our
website and download their application and we'll take care of it.
They have a good time, they really really Some of
the guys come back and say it's the best day
of their whole life other than their wedding. I mean,
this is a great, great time for them. They just
(14:01):
really enjoy it. And many of the guardians come back
into the exact same thing.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Okay, so Flight sixty two, we're still looking for veterans
to fill it, and we're also looking for guardians to
help out. They need their real ID. But the main
thing is fill out the application when you can find
it at the website, when you do a little search
on or fly to the Quad Cities and you get
right to it. But we would certainly think volunteers or
(14:28):
maybe people that are listening now just want to donate.
How can they do it?
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Sure? Oh yes, again, there's a app address on the website.
You can just send the check or drop it by
Richcrest Village. That's where we have our office and they
just put in our mailbox. But that's always great and
(14:53):
we do so much appreciate it. A lot of other
groups have fundraisers and then they and they say, hey,
we had a fundraiser and we're going to give you
the money. Well that's swell. I mean, that's great. I
love having doing it. And we have people from way
down in southern Illinois. We have people over in uh
Stealing and Rock Falls and Dixon, and people over in
(15:17):
uh Iowa, up and down the river. We have lots
of friends, lots of groups that help. We had a
school at uh Sabula, Illinois just did a bicycle thing.
Sinnus gave us the money. I mean, it's wonderful. This
is always say Quad Cities, but where the Quad City
(15:39):
area we go way out in the area. We just
love it.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Uh we just I would say in stand in the
Quad City area, let's just call it the Quad City
region because it's like one big welcome at We actually.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Have a veteran from Minnesota. His daughter lives here in town,
so he's going to drive downfrom Minnesota, stay a couple
of weeks with his daughter and son in law, and
go on the flight.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Wow, that is sick great that it is fantastic. And
again we're talking to Stephen Garrington, hub director Honor Flight
of the Quad Cities. Stephen, as we wrap this up
here today because I still feel like we could talk
another ten to fifteen minutes on all the great things
that are happening. If people want to find out more
as they get ready for that first flight. There's going
(16:26):
to be three this year, sixty two, sixty three, and
sixty four. But give us the date and how they
can be a part of this in one way or
the other.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
Well, the date is May May thirteenth is a flight.
And of course if they and some people I can't
deal with this time, I can't go. That's fine. Come
out to the airport on that date. Will We'll have
a information out about that later, but it's May thirteen.
Come out about nine thirty ten o'clock that night and
(16:59):
welcome the guy home. Say thank you to these deference
for their service. I mean, let them know how much
they're appreciated. That is, if nothing else, that is a
great thing to do. Come out and say thank you
as they as they come home.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
If you or your organization would like to be featured
on Quad City Forum, please visit the contact page and
our station website. Now back to Pat Luke and Danny Linhowe.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
We have Tony White, the president of the Bettendorf Lions Club,
on the line here this morning for our Quad City Forum.
And when you talk about the Lions Club, Tony, it
is amazed me. This is a service organization that has
been It was founded way back in the last century,
but since since the what the late nineteen teens and
(17:55):
the twenties, has done so many great things. Each each
community has a chapter, and you could tell how good
the community is if they have a Lions Club, you
know it's got to be a pretty good place. And
certainly that's the case with the bet North Lions Club.
So when we start to talk about all the things
that they do though, that's where each one is a
(18:15):
little different. It's all good. But let's just talk about
some of the great things that the bet North Lions
Club has done just in the some recent history.
Speaker 5 (18:25):
Very good. Yeah, thank you for the intro. That's so true.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Well, I'll have my bill later at the end of
the interview, Tony.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
So okay, it sounds good. Okay, I love it. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (18:39):
The Lions Club has been around since nineteen seventeen and
our chapter in Betton, norf since nineteen forty two. I
always like to tell people this that one our motto
as we serve. It's a very simple motto. Everyone in
the Lions Club, whatever chapter they're in, everyone's a volunteer.
All of the money that goes towards the administrative functions
(19:04):
of the club all come from our dues. So nothing
that we get from fundraisers that we do, all of
that goes back into the community, one hundred percent of it.
Absolutely none of that goes to the to the operation
or the administration of any of the clubs or the
international club at all. All of it goes back into
(19:26):
the community.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
So in this day and age, there's transparency there that
that's what we a lot of people will appreciate too.
Speaker 5 (19:34):
So true. Yeah, I always kind of joke about this
that that as the president of the bat North Lions Club,
I make the same amount of money as the international
director of the Line Club, which is nothing, so which
that's okay with me, It's all right.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (19:51):
So you had mentioned kind of the things that we do,
and all of these are just services that we provide
to the community and ones that we've we done for
quite a long time. I think a lot of people
associate the Lions Club with eyeglasses, right. We see the
little collection boxes at pharmacies, and we see them at
(20:13):
optometrist's office and libraries and such, and so what we
do is we collect eyeglasses that people aren't using anymore,
and as an entire organization, we clean those and we
we check the prescription on those and in essence we
repurpose them. But we cannot distribute those in the United
(20:37):
States because of there's certain laws in place that we
cannot do that it would be competing with you know,
optometrists and eyeglass manufacturers and such. So what we do
with those is we send them around the world to
third world countries where people would never have access to
better vision like that, so are those are distributed worldwide.
(21:04):
For years and years, the Lions Club has been known
for helping with with vision and any vision related problems
and so on our level, and I'm sure most clubs
do the same thing. We get requests from either school
age kids or from older adults that cannot afford a
(21:30):
either a vision screening or a hearing screening, and so
we provide that free of cost to those who request it.
And that also comes with either hearing aids if they
need that, and eyeglasses if they need those. So again,
these are these are people who likely would not be
(21:53):
able to afford that. And you know, if you've ever
had a visit to the eye doctor, how much that cost.
It really does cost.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
There's no yeah, there's no free stuff there. And certainly
with some families we can you can talk the level
of comfort for certain families. But if you have a
couple of three kids and money's a little tight, this
it becomes an almost insurmountable kind of a pile that
you have to try to get over, and you have
(22:22):
to do that times three. So that's where the Lines Club.
And really, when I was saying about Bettendorf Chapter, it's
a great point that you make where yet it's still
your footprint though will go outside of Bettendorf sometimes too.
So absolutely you're you're helping maybe the Bettendorf Lines Club,
(22:42):
but they are helping many other people and they can
with the big fundraiser that's coming up. And this doesn't
matter if you're in Bettendorf, Davenport, wherever. You want to
come and help out a great service organization. This is
the thing to do. In March twenty.
Speaker 5 (22:58):
Ninth, Yes, for sure. Yeah, we're we're having our trivia
night fundraiser. We've we've been doing those since twenty eleven.
I've I've done one just about every year. I think
the exception was COVID, but other than that, I did
one every year and it's it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
If we wait a minute, Tony, Tony, I hate to
break into the president of the Bettendorf Lions Club, but
sometimes they every person says the trivia nights are fun.
But if you get the groups that are really good,
this is there are sometimes near the end of the night,
they're having fun, but they want they only have want
to have fun if they win. Yes, so there's a
(23:44):
there's a competitive edge, but it's always great when as
the night goes on, it's it's good natured competitive fun
and then there's always just a good time. Generally, the
over the over writing theme is it's going to be
a good time. Now, howigs is there a theme to
the trivia or will it be Bettendorf history stuff or
(24:05):
how how do you work it out? How much time
does it take to get that going?
Speaker 4 (24:09):
You know?
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Yeah, that's those are great questions. Our trivia nights are
always ten rounds and have ten questions in each round.
I always try to make mine a pretty diverse group
of categories, so I always have like a music category
(24:33):
and a TV category, and a movies and a current
events and a history and a geography and yeah, a
lot of times I do some quant Cities trivia, and
I'll do some Iowa and Illinois trivia and things like that.
(24:54):
I always try to do something kind of current, like
it's gonna be at the and of March. So in
the past I've done March Madness category or Saint Patrick's
Day category.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Oh okay, yeah, depending on where where it is. Yeah,
where it's showing up on the day.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Yeah, yep, exactly exactly. And I always recommend to people
we have teams of eight, so there's tables of eight.
You can have a team of eight, and I just
recommend get the diverse team together, people that kind of
span the generations a little bit. That tends to help
(25:35):
because I try to make my questions cover the generations.
You know, some younger people will know a little bit more,
and some older people might know a little bit more,
and some kind of in the middle. You know, I
don't want to focused just on one group because that's
going to feel like it alienates too many people, and
(25:57):
so I try to make it cover the eight and
we do. We tend to have quite a few different
you know, age ranges come into these. Ours are always
known for having a lot of door prizes. We have
some great members that go out into the community and
we have so many wonderful and generous businesses in the
(26:19):
area that that donate some gift cards and things, and
we put together some raffle baskets and we have door
prizes and a couple of silent auction items and things
like that. And cost per person is fifteen dollars, and
so what that gives you, of course, is the entry fee.
(26:42):
But for ours we always include ten Mulligan stickers.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
Oh wow, that's normally a lot you have to pay
for those. Yeah, a little bit more so you're getting
you're helping them with the mulleg put it in. Yeah, yeah, idea.
Speaker 5 (26:57):
Yep, it is. And then we all also have included
in that a double down sticker.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
So wait a minute, what is a double down? This
seems like a it sounds like a political thing I've
heard here, so it could, but it's not. It's not. Okay,
so I guess we find out when people show up
on March twenty nine, they're going to find out what
your double down thing mates.
Speaker 5 (27:18):
Right, Yeah, Well, what it is is, if you feel
like we've answered all of these questions, we feel pretty
good about it. Okay, you put your double down sticker on,
and then you get twice the point.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Oh my gosh, that's fair.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Everyone has the same opportunity to do this because in
other trivia nights and kind of the way we used
to do it is we would sell the Mulligan stickers
and the double down stickers separate, and we decided, you know,
what let's just wrap it all in and that way
everyone gets the same chance.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
I love that. This sounds good. Now it's March twenty ninth,
Tanglewood Hills Pavilion. That's right off of Middle Road for
a lot of people heading I guess be east. You're
heading towards the TBK. You'll see it off to the left.
Speaker 5 (28:05):
Yep, right off of tangle Foot. Yeah, middle middle Road,
entangle Foot is where that is.
Speaker 2 (28:10):
That's you get that tangle thing and the tangle foot
in the tangle with lane. You just you I'm starting
you're starting to lose me a little bit tony when
you start throwing all that in there. But the main
thing and once you get there, once you but once
you get there, you go, oh that was easy to get.
I mean it really is not. It just confuses some people.
But the main thing is if people want to be
(28:32):
a part of they start booking their tables, because we
all it's a it's less than it'll be. Well, it'll
be fairly big date there on the calendar by the
time they hear this interview. So how can they book
a table now to be a part of this?
Speaker 5 (28:46):
So just have them just call me? Is it okay
if I give you my my phone number.
Speaker 2 (28:50):
Tony, it's okay with us as long as it's okay
with you. So give it now. Now. Sounds like it's
the perfect opportunity walk.
Speaker 1 (28:57):
Yeah, you might.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
You might never put down the phone. I never know. Okay,
it's a nice problem to have. But then again, well
we'll just give them the number and let's let's take
it from there.
Speaker 5 (29:08):
Sounds good. It is five six three three four zero
one five one seven.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Let's do it one more time. As soon as you
start to write it down there just looking for the paper,
I'm gonna give them. We're gonna give them enough chance.
Now just hold on a second. I could say it
really well there goalton Now, okay, we're ready.
Speaker 5 (29:28):
Okay, Now we're good. Now we're good. It is five
six three three four zero one five one seven.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
You've been listening to Quad City Forum, a weekly community
service program produced by iHeartRadio. If you were your nonprofit
organization would like to be featured fleets, visit the contact
page in our station website, or contact Quad City Forum
and carab iHeartMedia, Quad Cities three five three five East
Kimberley Road. Davin Fords Iowa five two eight zero seven
Welcome to Quad City Forum, a weekly community service program
produced by iHeartMedia to look at the issues and opportunities
that exist in our community. Now here's your hosts for
Quad City Forum, Hot Luke and Denny Lynn Howe.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Steve Garreton Hub, director of Honor Flight to the Quad Cities,
talking to us today. And I'm surprised that he has
enough time to be able to do that because it's
going to be busy, busy, busy this year. More on
that in just a few minutes. But Stephen, if you
can just tell us a little bit about what the
Honor Flight is all about.
Speaker 3 (00:36):
Sure, Well, first of all, we're honoring our veterans, and
right and right now we're taking we are taking applications
from veterans who serve before nineteen seventy five.
Speaker 4 (00:48):
Okay, we'll get other ones as we go along. We're
right now we're trying to pick up everybody for that
includes Vietnam and Kooy and World War Two and whatever
was in between. So we're trying to get all those
veterans and we're taking them to DC on a one
day flight. And Flight sixty two is coming up in
(01:08):
May and we're just getting we're putting, all the putting,
all the eyes and for us on all the t's
for that one. So we're getting ready on our sixty
second flight to DC and it should be fantastic.
Speaker 5 (01:22):
We're just looking forward to it.
Speaker 4 (01:26):
Those guys will go there, they'll see the monuments, they'll
see some of the old equipment that they used to
use at the museum. They're just going to have a
good and we're going to feed them a lot.
Speaker 2 (01:38):
Well they with all that they've gone through, that's certainly
deserving of that. Now, when we talk about sixty two flights,
I would think everybody from before nineteen seventy five knew
about this and has already gone on. But you probably
still will run run into this where a lot of
veterans say, no, no, no, I don't deserve that.
Speaker 4 (02:00):
Oh yeah, yeah, they're here. Oh some of it is
more important to me, and they did that, and I'm
I'm just not.
Speaker 2 (02:06):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (02:07):
Veterans are the most humble people actually you'll meet. They're
they're very humble about what they did. Guys who have
the silver star, the bronze now, well, I you know
there was a mistake or something.
Speaker 1 (02:21):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (02:22):
Just very humble, except for me. Of course everybody else
is really um.
Speaker 2 (02:28):
Well okay, so outside of it, and that we are
talking to the humble Steve Garrington, hub director at the
Honor Flight of the Quad Cities. If people want to
find out more, website to do just that.
Speaker 4 (02:42):
Honor Flight qc dot. You know, just just google Honor
Flight Quad Cities. You'll you'll get to US.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Okay, Honor Flight quad Cities. Just do a Google search
in that and you're good now, yes, And on that you.
Speaker 4 (02:55):
Will find applications of veterans and application since the guardians
and we would like to have a lot more guardians
people guardians up. The nice thing about a guardian who
doesn't know a veteran come in, he hasn't heard the
veterans story before. The veteran has already told that their
(03:16):
kids the story fifty seven times. They don't want to
hear it again. Their new guardian coming in says, hey,
tell me all the stories. And they make such good
new friends. And when people get in my age, you
got to make new friends because some of them are
going quick. So you like making new friends and that's great.
So we need people to sign up to be guardians.
(03:38):
And that's on that same website Google on a flight
quad Cities.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
All right, sounds good. Now when we talk about some
of the veterans too, this makes it seem like if
you were in action. Sometimes if you're a veteran but
you were state side, this is still a perfect opportunity
to head to DC.
Speaker 4 (03:57):
Absolutely, that doesn't matter if they, oh, we're at a
desk in you know, Fort Benning, or if they were
over in Germany or in Korea. You know, that's they're
still going to go with us. We're still just just
as long as they were a veteran before seventy five,
will will take them.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
There is one little problem though, Okay.
Speaker 4 (04:23):
The TSA, that's a Transportation Security agency, not at the
Salvation Army. The TSA requires the new real ID. We
have a star in the corner of your driver's license
to your ID card. So if you know a veteran,
tell them go get your real ID because you can't
(04:45):
fly without it. They're just not gonna let us take it.
And I don't want to have anybody show up at
the airport and say, well I don't have a real ID.
You can't even a passport. But the real idea is
what we'd really like to have every veteran. So if
you know a veteran, say, have you guys your real
idea yet? Go get it. And that's by the way,
I think it's different between Iowa and Illinois as to
(05:07):
what you have to take and give them, So you
got to call the driver's license bureau to find out
what you need. But the real idea is going to
become very important. We're just holding our breath that we
don't have any problems with that.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Well, it's still something to realize too that it's great
to update your license anyway. And while you're at it,
as people are listening to this today, for some people
they could have a passport but it's out of date.
So it certainly is a good idea to always update
those and make sure that you're ready to go. Because
it's the world we're living in right now. So you
(05:40):
can complain about it, but let's not complain. Get everything
updated so you're ready to go. And that would be
the similar thing. If people want to volunteer and be
a guardian, you've got to make sure you get all
this in order because the day of is too late
to be doing some of this stuff. There's quite a
lead time certainly is m h.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
It's hurry up and right to get it in there.
We'll call you.
Speaker 2 (06:02):
Well, it's going to be a busy it's going to
be a busy year in twenty twenty five because not
just one flight, or I would think sometimes it would
be two, but you've got three this year. You got three.
Speaker 4 (06:12):
Three sister twos in three sixty four and the one
is in May and the other two are going to
be in the autumn, okay, and so we're looking forward
to doing that. It uh, there's good times. Spring is
hard to do in d C. They have a cherry
(06:33):
blossom festival and you can't hire a bus because all
of uses are taking tours on a turer bossom festival tours, right,
So it's really difficult. So we do one kind of
lateness springlets in May and then we do a couple
in the fall. And that's that's beginning to work out
pretty well well.
Speaker 2 (06:55):
And you know, we talk about how there can it
can DC can be tightened up and type security. Just
a few weeks ago when they had the joint to
speech to Congress, the whole place is on lockdown. So
it's not because people they want to make sure the
DC is safe and so you have to pick your time,
but it's still it's important. When we talk about some
(07:17):
of our veterans from before nineteen seventy five, the clock
is ticking. We want to make sure if they want
to get out there, they get out there. So the
first couple of steps, what should our veterans or our
veterans families start to do outside of making sure they
get the real ID and also update the passport. What's
the first couple of steps after that?
Speaker 4 (07:39):
Just get the application in first, and then what we'll
do is we take the guys who are before nineteen
seventy five, by the date that they apply, we'll call
them and we'll say are you available now? Since we're
going to have some people who may not be available,
we always call our things come up. So if we're
(08:00):
going to take eighty people on the flight, we'll call
one hundred and say are you available? Okay, and then well,
if if that what works out, well we'll send out
a letter to them and then they'll tell them all
the details what they need to do, what they need
to bring, dates and times and all that sort of stuff.
But we will call them when their turn comes up
and that's the that's and we'll probably say if you
(08:22):
have a.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
Real id, right, that'll be the first question. And then
after that then let's start. Let's start working on it.
Guardians have to be the same kind of a thing,
what kind of lead time along with you know, first off,
apply because there'll be some cost in that too.
Speaker 4 (08:39):
There will be that that helps pay free airplane. It's
not cheap during an airplane for a day, but they
all the all of the guardians pay four hundred dollars
to go. And now I have got many guardians, I
mean who have had such a wonderful time that they
have paid it three or four times to go on
on flights. Wow, they just have a great time. Some
(09:03):
of them take pictures and make up those little picture
books and give them to their veterans after them after
the flights over. They just they're just so wonderful. Some
of them write veterans to their house for Thanksgiving dinner.
I mean, it's just really really great. You mean, they
make a real, real good vacation and then the meeting
of new friends. So we're really happy and they'll be
(09:26):
We'll call them well ahead of time say are you
are you available and we need extra guardians because a
lot of people work and that they may not work
for them. You know, if I want right eighty guardians,
I better call one hundred and twenty.
Speaker 3 (09:43):
Right.
Speaker 2 (09:44):
Yeah, you got to make sure. It's like putting a
like a puzzle piece together. Not all of the parts
are going to work the first time. And when you
talked about some of the veterans how they've maybe told
stories to some of their family then getting a chance
to talk to some of the guardians, I would still
think Steve that some of the veterans still can be
tight lips. Sometimes they're not gonna talk. And it's a
(10:06):
great chance for that guardian to be able to help
that veteran come out of their show. Like you said,
you can you can start a life, even though it's
a little bit later in life. You can start a
lifetime friendship with this flight.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
It is that is probably one of the greater things
it comes out of the flight. I mean it's nice
for them to go into the memorial, but to really
make a true friend that's going to you know, meet
them and talk to them, listen to their stories. I mean,
a guardian is going to spend a whole day focusing
(10:41):
in on that veteran a whole day. The last time
I had somebody spend a whole day focusing on me
was my honeymoon.
Speaker 2 (10:51):
Hey wait a minute, Steve, Now let's stop getting too
personal on that stuff.
Speaker 4 (10:54):
Okay, what it is, it's a day when somebody really
focuses in and this question and I want to hear
the story. Well what about this? Well what was that? Who?
Who's who did you get love letters from while you
were in the service besides your wife? You know, I
mean those those questions. They have wonderful questions, and they
get and the meant and what really happens In many
(11:16):
many cases, the the veteran will go back the guardian
will say, now, don't forget, You've told me some great stories,
but you need to go back to your family and
tell them the stories. And some families say, it's the
first time we heard these stories after they got back
from the And it's after they got back, so it's
(11:37):
a time when there's nobody to judge them. They're all
they're all with their all military bodies or with these
guardians who are eager to see them. They there's no
judgmental about it. They're just going to have a good
time and they can lie.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Well it's you know what, it's therapeutic.
Speaker 4 (12:00):
Well, they don't really lie, they just leave out parts
and stretch the others. You know, it's kind of gong.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
Effishent absolutely and a good time. Now, how many do
the guardians just meet the veteran that they're on just
on the flight that day, or is there a little
bit of lead time before the flight?
Speaker 4 (12:19):
There is ten days before we have a meeting for
all the veterans and their guardians, the chance they get
a chance to meet each other. We'll tell them a
little bit about this and we'll spend a little we'll
send the veterans home and then we'll talk to the
guardians and we'll give them some training. Things that they
(12:41):
may not think about, things that they have to do.
Speaker 5 (12:45):
We tell the people you.
Speaker 4 (12:47):
Can't carry a purse because you want to have both
hands ready to catch a guardian in case he starts
to fall. You know, lots of little odds and ins
that will teach them, to help them have a really
wonderful day, help them with the question of questions you
might want to ask. Remember, if they get a bottle
of water, you need to unscrew it because with ours
lightis as long as guy made a hard time on
(13:07):
screwing a bottle of water exactly, I have it's a
hard time.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
Well, you think about this. If it's a veteran before
nineteen seventy five, so that probably means that veteran most
cases is in their seventies at least.
Speaker 4 (13:19):
Yeah. Absolutely, they were eighties or.
Speaker 2 (13:22):
Nineties exactly now. And for people that are now hang
on a second. Now, for people that are just tuning in,
Stephen Garrington, hub director Honor Flight at the Quad Cities
is talking to us. Now you go ahead, Steve, you
continue please.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
It's great.
Speaker 2 (13:40):
We do it.
Speaker 4 (13:40):
And of course they just need to go to our
website and download their application and we'll take care of it.
They have a good time, they really really Some of
the guys come back and say it's the best day
of their whole life other than their wedding. I mean,
this is a great, great time for them. They just
(14:01):
really enjoy it. And many of the guardians come back
into the exact same thing.
Speaker 2 (14:07):
Okay, so Flight sixty two, we're still looking for veterans
to fill it, and we're also looking for guardians to
help out. They need their real ID. But the main
thing is fill out the application when you can find
it at the website, when you do a little search
on or fly to the Quad Cities and you get
right to it. But we would certainly think volunteers or
(14:28):
maybe people that are listening now just want to donate.
How can they do it?
Speaker 4 (14:32):
Sure? Oh yes, again, there's a app address on the website.
You can just send the check or drop it by
Richcrest Village. That's where we have our office and they
just put in our mailbox. But that's always great and
(14:53):
we do so much appreciate it. A lot of other
groups have fundraisers and then they and they say, hey,
we had a fundraiser and we're going to give you
the money. Well that's swell. I mean, that's great. I
love having doing it. And we have people from way
down in southern Illinois. We have people over in uh
Stealing and Rock Falls and Dixon, and people over in
(15:17):
uh Iowa, up and down the river. We have lots
of friends, lots of groups that help. We had a
school at uh Sabula, Illinois just did a bicycle thing.
Sinnus gave us the money. I mean, it's wonderful. This
is always say Quad Cities, but where the Quad City
(15:39):
area we go way out in the area. We just
love it.
Speaker 2 (15:43):
Uh we just I would say in stand in the
Quad City area, let's just call it the Quad City
region because it's like one big welcome at We actually.
Speaker 4 (15:52):
Have a veteran from Minnesota. His daughter lives here in town,
so he's going to drive downfrom Minnesota, stay a couple
of weeks with his daughter and son in law, and
go on the flight.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Wow, that is sick great that it is fantastic. And
again we're talking to Stephen Garrington, hub director Honor Flight
of the Quad Cities. Stephen, as we wrap this up
here today because I still feel like we could talk
another ten to fifteen minutes on all the great things
that are happening. If people want to find out more
as they get ready for that first flight. There's going
(16:26):
to be three this year, sixty two, sixty three, and
sixty four. But give us the date and how they
can be a part of this in one way or
the other.
Speaker 4 (16:36):
Well, the date is May May thirteenth is a flight.
And of course if they and some people I can't
deal with this time, I can't go. That's fine. Come
out to the airport on that date. Will We'll have
a information out about that later, but it's May thirteen.
Come out about nine thirty ten o'clock that night and
(16:59):
welcome the guy home. Say thank you to these deference
for their service. I mean, let them know how much
they're appreciated. That is, if nothing else, that is a
great thing to do. Come out and say thank you
as they as they come home.
Speaker 1 (17:16):
If you or your organization would like to be featured
on Quad City Forum, please visit the contact page and
our station website. Now back to Pat Luke and Danny Linhowe.
Speaker 2 (17:30):
We have Tony White, the president of the Bettendorf Lions Club,
on the line here this morning for our Quad City Forum.
And when you talk about the Lions Club, Tony, it
is amazed me. This is a service organization that has
been It was founded way back in the last century,
but since since the what the late nineteen teens and
(17:55):
the twenties, has done so many great things. Each each
community has a chapter, and you could tell how good
the community is if they have a Lions Club, you
know it's got to be a pretty good place. And
certainly that's the case with the bet North Lions Club.
So when we start to talk about all the things
that they do though, that's where each one is a
(18:15):
little different. It's all good. But let's just talk about
some of the great things that the bet North Lions
Club has done just in the some recent history.
Speaker 5 (18:25):
Very good. Yeah, thank you for the intro. That's so true.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
Well, I'll have my bill later at the end of
the interview, Tony.
Speaker 3 (18:33):
So okay, it sounds good. Okay, I love it. Yeah.
Speaker 5 (18:39):
The Lions Club has been around since nineteen seventeen and
our chapter in Betton, norf since nineteen forty two. I
always like to tell people this that one our motto
as we serve. It's a very simple motto. Everyone in
the Lions Club, whatever chapter they're in, everyone's a volunteer.
All of the money that goes towards the administrative functions
(19:04):
of the club all come from our dues. So nothing
that we get from fundraisers that we do, all of
that goes back into the community, one hundred percent of it.
Absolutely none of that goes to the to the operation
or the administration of any of the clubs or the
international club at all. All of it goes back into
(19:26):
the community.
Speaker 2 (19:27):
So in this day and age, there's transparency there that
that's what we a lot of people will appreciate too.
Speaker 5 (19:34):
So true. Yeah, I always kind of joke about this
that that as the president of the bat North Lions Club,
I make the same amount of money as the international
director of the Line Club, which is nothing, so which
that's okay with me, It's all right.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (19:51):
So you had mentioned kind of the things that we do,
and all of these are just services that we provide
to the community and ones that we've we done for
quite a long time. I think a lot of people
associate the Lions Club with eyeglasses, right. We see the
little collection boxes at pharmacies, and we see them at
(20:13):
optometrist's office and libraries and such, and so what we
do is we collect eyeglasses that people aren't using anymore,
and as an entire organization, we clean those and we
we check the prescription on those and in essence we
repurpose them. But we cannot distribute those in the United
(20:37):
States because of there's certain laws in place that we
cannot do that it would be competing with you know,
optometrists and eyeglass manufacturers and such. So what we do
with those is we send them around the world to
third world countries where people would never have access to
better vision like that, so are those are distributed worldwide.
(21:04):
For years and years, the Lions Club has been known
for helping with with vision and any vision related problems
and so on our level, and I'm sure most clubs
do the same thing. We get requests from either school
age kids or from older adults that cannot afford a
(21:30):
either a vision screening or a hearing screening, and so
we provide that free of cost to those who request it.
And that also comes with either hearing aids if they
need that, and eyeglasses if they need those. So again,
these are these are people who likely would not be
(21:53):
able to afford that. And you know, if you've ever
had a visit to the eye doctor, how much that cost.
It really does cost.
Speaker 2 (22:01):
There's no yeah, there's no free stuff there. And certainly
with some families we can you can talk the level
of comfort for certain families. But if you have a
couple of three kids and money's a little tight, this
it becomes an almost insurmountable kind of a pile that
you have to try to get over, and you have
(22:22):
to do that times three. So that's where the Lines Club.
And really, when I was saying about Bettendorf Chapter, it's
a great point that you make where yet it's still
your footprint though will go outside of Bettendorf sometimes too.
So absolutely you're you're helping maybe the Bettendorf Lines Club,
(22:42):
but they are helping many other people and they can
with the big fundraiser that's coming up. And this doesn't
matter if you're in Bettendorf, Davenport, wherever. You want to
come and help out a great service organization. This is
the thing to do. In March twenty.
Speaker 5 (22:58):
Ninth, Yes, for sure. Yeah, we're we're having our trivia
night fundraiser. We've we've been doing those since twenty eleven.
I've I've done one just about every year. I think
the exception was COVID, but other than that, I did
one every year and it's it's pretty fun.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
If we wait a minute, Tony, Tony, I hate to
break into the president of the Bettendorf Lions Club, but
sometimes they every person says the trivia nights are fun.
But if you get the groups that are really good,
this is there are sometimes near the end of the night,
they're having fun, but they want they only have want
to have fun if they win. Yes, so there's a
(23:44):
there's a competitive edge, but it's always great when as
the night goes on, it's it's good natured competitive fun
and then there's always just a good time. Generally, the
over the over writing theme is it's going to be
a good time. Now, howigs is there a theme to
the trivia or will it be Bettendorf history stuff or
(24:05):
how how do you work it out? How much time
does it take to get that going?
Speaker 4 (24:09):
You know?
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Yeah, that's those are great questions. Our trivia nights are
always ten rounds and have ten questions in each round.
I always try to make mine a pretty diverse group
of categories, so I always have like a music category
(24:33):
and a TV category, and a movies and a current
events and a history and a geography and yeah, a
lot of times I do some quant Cities trivia, and
I'll do some Iowa and Illinois trivia and things like that.
(24:54):
I always try to do something kind of current, like
it's gonna be at the and of March. So in
the past I've done March Madness category or Saint Patrick's
Day category.
Speaker 2 (25:07):
Oh okay, yeah, depending on where where it is. Yeah,
where it's showing up on the day.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Yeah, yep, exactly exactly. And I always recommend to people
we have teams of eight, so there's tables of eight.
You can have a team of eight, and I just
recommend get the diverse team together, people that kind of
span the generations a little bit. That tends to help
(25:35):
because I try to make my questions cover the generations.
You know, some younger people will know a little bit more,
and some older people might know a little bit more,
and some kind of in the middle. You know, I
don't want to focused just on one group because that's
going to feel like it alienates too many people, and
(25:57):
so I try to make it cover the eight and
we do. We tend to have quite a few different
you know, age ranges come into these. Ours are always
known for having a lot of door prizes. We have
some great members that go out into the community and
we have so many wonderful and generous businesses in the
(26:19):
area that that donate some gift cards and things, and
we put together some raffle baskets and we have door
prizes and a couple of silent auction items and things
like that. And cost per person is fifteen dollars, and
so what that gives you, of course, is the entry fee.
(26:42):
But for ours we always include ten Mulligan stickers.
Speaker 2 (26:48):
Oh wow, that's normally a lot you have to pay
for those. Yeah, a little bit more so you're getting
you're helping them with the mulleg put it in. Yeah, yeah, idea.
Speaker 5 (26:57):
Yep, it is. And then we all also have included
in that a double down sticker.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
So wait a minute, what is a double down? This
seems like a it sounds like a political thing I've
heard here, so it could, but it's not. It's not. Okay,
so I guess we find out when people show up
on March twenty nine, they're going to find out what
your double down thing mates.
Speaker 5 (27:18):
Right, Yeah, Well, what it is is, if you feel
like we've answered all of these questions, we feel pretty
good about it. Okay, you put your double down sticker on,
and then you get twice the point.
Speaker 2 (27:31):
Oh my gosh, that's fair.
Speaker 5 (27:33):
Everyone has the same opportunity to do this because in
other trivia nights and kind of the way we used
to do it is we would sell the Mulligan stickers
and the double down stickers separate, and we decided, you know,
what let's just wrap it all in and that way
everyone gets the same chance.
Speaker 2 (27:52):
I love that. This sounds good. Now it's March twenty ninth,
Tanglewood Hills Pavilion. That's right off of Middle Road for
a lot of people heading I guess be east. You're
heading towards the TBK. You'll see it off to the left.
Speaker 5 (28:05):
Yep, right off of tangle Foot. Yeah, middle middle Road,
entangle Foot is where that is.
Speaker 2 (28:10):
That's you get that tangle thing and the tangle foot
in the tangle with lane. You just you I'm starting
you're starting to lose me a little bit tony when
you start throwing all that in there. But the main
thing and once you get there, once you but once
you get there, you go, oh that was easy to get.
I mean it really is not. It just confuses some people.
But the main thing is if people want to be
(28:32):
a part of they start booking their tables, because we
all it's a it's less than it'll be. Well, it'll
be fairly big date there on the calendar by the
time they hear this interview. So how can they book
a table now to be a part of this?
Speaker 5 (28:46):
So just have them just call me? Is it okay
if I give you my my phone number.
Speaker 2 (28:50):
Tony, it's okay with us as long as it's okay
with you. So give it now. Now. Sounds like it's
the perfect opportunity walk.
Speaker 1 (28:57):
Yeah, you might.
Speaker 2 (28:58):
You might never put down the phone. I never know. Okay,
it's a nice problem to have. But then again, well
we'll just give them the number and let's let's take
it from there.
Speaker 5 (29:08):
Sounds good. It is five six three three four zero
one five one seven.
Speaker 2 (29:14):
Let's do it one more time. As soon as you
start to write it down there just looking for the paper,
I'm gonna give them. We're gonna give them enough chance.
Now just hold on a second. I could say it
really well there goalton Now, okay, we're ready.
Speaker 5 (29:28):
Okay, Now we're good. Now we're good. It is five
six three three four zero one five one seven.
Speaker 1 (29:36):
You've been listening to Quad City Forum, a weekly community
service program produced by iHeartRadio. If you were your nonprofit
organization would like to be featured fleets, visit the contact
page in our station website, or contact Quad City Forum
and carab iHeartMedia, Quad Cities three five three five East
Kimberley Road. Davin Fords Iowa five two eight zero seven
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