By Vicky Fukuhara, Daughter of WWII Veteran Wing Lai

My dad was fortunate to be invited by the Gary Sinise Foundation for their second-to-last Soaring Valor trip to see the National WWII Museum in New Orleans (NO)! Dad served for the 14th Air Service Group 555 Air Service squadron in the CBI (China-Burma-India) theatre. Also known as The Flying Tigers. Not everyone knows about the CBI theatre and this hurts Dad. He calls it the “forgotten theatre” so he was hell bent to tell everybody about it!!!!

We were treated with full honors all the way, from in-airport escort to the gate with a bagpiper and security leading the way, to a ceremonial send off at the gate, to a charter flight to NO, to a 1940’s themed welcome upon gate arrival, to full police escort to the hotel, food galore, and special treatment at the museum!! It was a whirlwind few days, but wouldn’t trade it for anything! Besides the VIP treatment, this trip was also special in that local high school students were each paired with a veteran through the whole trip. The students really got lessons of history and life they can't get from school. By the end of the trip, I don't know if any student had dry eyes saying their goodbyes. I didn't and even Dad got teary! It was beautifully emotional and a trip those students will never forget. We hope they take it forward so that no one forgets what happened.

Regarding the museum: huge (10 acres!) but beautiful. It’s worth a trip if you are in the area. In fact it is the #1 tourist destination in NO and for good reason. The exhibits are detailed and just to see, hear, feel the surroundings really helps one to understand the history.

Lastly, I want to say that if you can please support the Gary Sinise Foundation. I personally saw how dedicated and caring the team was to all 14 WWII veterans (and families) who were on our trip - the oldest was 103 (soon to be 104) and still bright-eyed and full of stories! I feel so honored to have spent time with Dad and these very special gentlemen.

WWII Veteran Wing Lai was featured in CHCP's "Our Story of War and Remembrance" documentary, CHCP's Local Heroes exhibit, and in this Fox 10 Phoenix news clip: