Last Hurrah Boys’ Trip: 3 senior veteran pilot pals fly together for free

• Former pilots Jack Henderson, David Crawford, and Dick Snider, all in their 90’s, have gotten along very well in an assisted living facility.
• Having the same interests, the three pals planned for the Reno Air Races trip in Nevada, but tickets were not available yet.
• Travel agent Julie Pflaumer offered them an option: a bi-plane experience for free!

Nothing is too late in friendship.

Jack Henderson, 90, David Crawford, 93, and Dick Snider, 90, have easily gotten along in an Oregon assisted living facility. The three quickly formed a bond as they have an especially important common ground: all were veterans and pilots.

“They happened to be former pilots too, so we got together rather quickly,” said Jack, who served in the Navy as a Petty officer first class (PO1) and later became a civilian pilot.

David — a radio operator in the Navy before becoming a civilian — and 90-year-old Dick, who served in the US Army before getting his wings, couldn’t agree more.

One day, Jack called Julie Pflaumer, a travel agent, to arrange a trip to the Reno Air Races in Nevada for him and his friends.

Julie closely worked on the request and did some research on the trip, only to find out that the tickets won’t be available until later this year.

Jack was saddened by the circumstance, thinking that “Well, I might not even be around by the time they’re available.”

Knowing how much it would mean to the pilot friends, Julie thought of finding another option. She chanced upon AeroLegengs Biplane Rides, which offers bi-plane experiences in the town where the three buddies live. She thought the three being up in the skies, all having navigated planes in the past, would be a perfect idea. So she planned to give it to them for free.

So, Julie posted her plan in a travel agent’s group on Facebook and got shocked when donations started pouring in! She soon raised over $1,100, way beyond the $600 needed.

“I don’t deserve all the credit here, this was merely an idea on my part and the only reason it turned into what it was, was because everybody chipped in,” Julie said.

The gift certificates for the bi-plane excursion in March were given to the former pilots, who were very delighted to feel the skies up there again.

Jack said “it was such an unexpected, pleasant surprise.”

Dick was all the more joyful. He had a plan to fly with the company before to throw his late wife’s ashes, which he wasn’t able to do yet, until that dream trip.

“I’d like to think his wife is up in heaven saying ‘Come on honey let’s get the show on the road’,” said Julie, who’s been a travel agent for four years. “The biggest thing for me is being able to bring that happiness to people, of being able to do something they didn’t think they could.”

Surely, Julie was able to do just that.

Source: Good News Network