Dean Tate’s trip to Washington, D.C., on Oct. 24 was a short, but memorable one.

The Montgomery City resident was one of numerous veterans who went to the nation’s capital as part of Central Missouri Honor Flight’s 65th mission. They visited the memorials dedicated to honor their service and sacrifices.

“We left Mexico at 1 a.m. on Monday morning and we were back at 9:30 that night,” Tate said. “We’re just going and coming and moving on. Everybody I talked to said it’s strenuous, but it’s worth it. It gets the adrenaline flowing and keeps you going. I didn’t know if I could do all of the walking or not. But I walked every step.”

Tate served in the U.S. Navy from December 1962 to May 1966 during the Vietnam War. He was one of 82 veterans on the Honor Flight trip.

“I didn’t actually qualify for this trip,” Tate said. “You have to go lay into rice paddies and get shot at. You just needed to be in service during the years of conflict. We ran patrol up and down the coast two or three times, looking for guns and stuff going into the enemy. They called that a war zone. It wasn’t a war. It was a conflict.”

The flight included three Korean War veterans, one World War II veteran and many Vietnam veterans, including Tate. Before the flight, the veterans checked in at the Columbia Courtyard by Marriott and got a buffet breakfast by midnight. Then, three charter buses took the veterans to Lambert Airport so they can fly to Washington.

While at Washington, the veterans toured the World War II Memorial, the Korean War Memorial, the Vietnam Memorial, the Battle of Iwo Jima Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

“We got to see a lot of stuff,” Tate said. “They kept us moving the whole time.”

The veterans flew back to St. Louis later that evening before riding the bus back to Columbia for a welcome home celebration.

Central Missouri Honor Flight has taken 4,958 veterans to Washington since 2009. The flights are provided at no cost to the veterans.

Vice-president Steve Paulsell said veterans get very excited to visit the nation’s capital even though the trip is pretty short.

“It’s kind of interesting,” Paulsell said. “As tired as everybody is, it seems like they get younger as the days go on. Adrenaline and things like that kick in. They do really well.”

Tate made plans on going on an earlier Honor Flight trip, but the plans were put on hold after he was tested positive for COVID-19 in August.

Tate said he was glad he made his first trip to Washington since 1963, when he was stationed at the U.S. Navy in Maryland.

“It was once in a lifetime as far as I was concerned,” said Tate, who was the only Montgomery County resident on the trip. “I would recommend it to anybody. If you’re not sure about your health or your stamina or whatever, there are people who will take care of you.”