Geoffrey Ionescu

Marvin Welcome home by his grandchildren. His daughter was his escort for the trip to D.C.
The Honor Flight Network is a non-profit organization creating solely to honor America’s veterans for all their sacrifices. They fly veterans to Washington, D.C. to visit and reflect at their memorials to honor the service and sacrifices of themselves and their friends. Marvin Ruble, a Vietnam Veteran, the Commander of the VFW and the 1st Vice of the American Legion was honored by being selected to be on the Collier Honor Flight, Saturday, October 20th. Together with 75 other Veterans, Marvin Ruble flew to Washington to visit the monuments. “It was a good, solemn thing for me,” Marvin says, “at first I was a little reluctant because I don’t feel like a hero, my brothers that gave their lives are the real heroes. The heroes are on that wall in Washington, those are the real ones. I even got the see the White House and the changing of the guards at the Tomb of the Unknown soldier, that was very impressive,” Marvin explains. “I was stationed in Germany first but asked for a transfer to Vietnam. My older brothers had been there and I didn’t want them to outdo me,” Ruble says jokingly. “I spent thirteen months in Vietnam as a combat engineer and a year in Korea after that.”

L - Linda Teasley, President of American Legion Auxiliary. In the center is Marvin's daughter who was his escort on the flight. R - Cindy Pearce, Auxiliary.
“When we came home from visiting the monuments in Washington we received such a warm welcome I couldn’t believe it. Especially seeing my three little grandbabies after a day like that.” “I didn’t really know people liked us, because when we came back from Vietnam, we did not receive such a warm welcome. We got spit on and called all sorts of names. This Honor Flight really helped me get closure. Of course in a way, you never get closure from something like that, but the way they treated us that day really made me feel like I actually was a hero.”