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Local 2881 Member Spotlight

Honor Flight 2023

By: Ryan Grebe, Fire Captain SLU

We, as Americans, regard few places in this country as truly sacred. Places where a tangible connection can be felt with the past and our nation’s heritage. Many of these sites have a religious affiliation or mark a specific historical event, but they all elicit a strong emotional response from those who visit. You will likely observe visitors silently pausing to reflect due to the gravity of what these places represent.

My name is Ryan Grebe, and I’m a Fire Captain for the CAL FIRE - San Luis Obispo Unit. Last month, I had the honor of accompanying 92 veterans to Washington, DC, with my friend and fellow Fire Captain Josh Lorenzo, as a guardian for Honor Flight Central Coast. Over three days, we toured several of our nation’s memorials and historic sites. I was paired with two Vietnam-era veterans, Jim Hanto, an air- man with the US Air Force, and Joe Rodriguez, an infantryman with the US Army. Our job as guardians was to ensure our veterans’ needs were taken care of so their trip could be as memorable as possible.

As veterans of Operation Iraqi Freedom, Josh and I have always wanted to visit these memorials in Washington and pay our respects to the millions of men and women who have fought and defended this country before us. For Veterans of the armed forces, our national memorials represent something far more than stone plaques and curated gardens. They represent an acknowledgment from a grateful nation of the ultimate sacrifice one could make: to give one’s life in service of oth- ers. To forfeit personal safety so others might live in a country free from tyranny and oppression. For Veterans, visiting these memorials is a profoundly personal and meaningful experience.

Some might not fully understand why veterans are revered by so many. These peo- ple are the reason we still enjoy the freedoms we do today. They represent the strength, perseverance, and grit that America was built on, and they shouldered immense burdens for us because our country was and still is worth fighting for.

Most Americans have no idea how lucky they are to live in a free country protected by these brave men and women, most of whom they will never know. When most of our wars are fought on foreign soil, it is easy to forget that these brave Americans paid a price for the prosperity we enjoy today.

As we toured the different memorials, I felt a sense of pride that was hard to articulate. I felt proud to be an American veteran involved in an experience that allowed

me to meet and hear the stories of so many amazing people, including the real he- roes of this country. I saw healing occur when men and women, now in their seventies and eighties, approached the memorials of a war they fought as young adults. I saw them weep as they courageously approached the Vietnam wall and found the names of their friends who didn’t make it home. To say it was a powerful experience is a severe understatement, and we owe these veterans our deepest gratitude.

You may wonder why this trip was sponsored by Local 2881, the union representing CAL FIRE firefighters. What is the connection between two firefighters embarking on this journey and our fire department? If I had to summarize what I gained from this trip in one word, it would be perspective. Hearing stories from real combat veterans and how they speak about the adversity they faced during various conflicts gave me a new perspective on the challenges I face in my own life. And while our lives as firefighters differ significantly from those who served so long ago, what might happen if we applied a different perspective to the problems we all face every day?

So, after thinking about this idea on the five-hour flight home, I consolidated my thoughts into five lessons these veterans taught me through their stories and honorable service to our country.

Continuing reading about Honor Flight 2023 HERE.

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