When the call came, Bob Johnson was lying in a hospital bed recovering from open heart surgery.
Judy Wise, the veterans chairman for the Elks Lodge of Plant City, called in July to offer Johnson, a Vietnam veteran, the opportunity attend the national Parade of Heroes on Veterans Day, just a handful of months following the intensive surgery.
“She asked if I would be better, if I would be free to go, and I told her I would clear my schedule and be there,” Johnson said. “It was such an honor to have been nominated to go. The Elks are so good to veterans and I was just so honored to have the opportunity.”
Johnson was a helicopter pilot in the war and has been with the Elks for four years. Wise said his animated personality and humble nature made him an obvious pick when the lodge realized they had an opportunity to send a veteran to take part in the event. Without a second thought, the group paid all of the fees to send him on the once-in-a-lifetime trip.
She said Johnson has no qualms talking about his exploits overseas but has never once bragged about his service. When Wise called him in the hospital she said she was not prepared for the level of gratitude and excitement Johnson demonstrated.
“If I had it my way I’d find every veteran in this town and do something for them,” Wise said. “The Elks love
their veterans and Bob is just one of the best people in our lodge. I thought of him immediately because he doesn’t have any family, really, and we just wanted to do something special for him.”
Johnson spent the weekend of Veterans Day surrounded by his fellow veterans and being treated with a level of honor he said is rarely demonstrated toward those who served in Vietnam.
“Vietnam vets have always suffered from the fact that there were so many anti-war protestors and draft dodgers and people leaving the country and fleeing to Canada,” Johnson said. “None of us were welcomed home. We were spit on and called ‘baby killers.’ There comes a point in time when you have to look straight in the eye of a veteran and say thanks, or say ‘I disagree with the war but I’m proud of your service and your loyalty.’”
For most of his life, Johnson saw neither, though he always went out of his way to give the respect and honor to others. When he found out Honor Flights were coming to St. Petersburg he and a fellow veteran drove there to salute and give a “proper welcome home” to the World War II veterans returning from Washington D.C.
Dodging a barricade, Johnson and his friend blocked the path of the incoming veterans, clicked their heels and went to attention. Tears filled his eyes as he recalled the look of gratitude and shock that crossed the face of the veterans as they made sure to shake each of their hands.
He said regardless of thoughts on the war, when a person enlists they sign a blank check up to and including their life to the United States government. In his opinion, that sacrifice should always be honored.
While walking down the steps of the Lincoln Monument, wearing a gold medallion thanking him for his service, Johnson was shocked to find streams of tourists going out of their way to shake his hand, to cheer for him and the veterans with him. It was a reception he said he never thought he would see.
“People would stop and come up to use and shake hands and thank you for your service,” Johnson said. “We got that everywhere we went. It was very gratifying. There was a ceremony in front of the Lincoln Memorial with five or six high school bands there in full uniform. I stood right in front of the reflecting pool and held a banner. I’ll never forget it.”
His favorite memory was the camaraderie that blossomed between the nearly 50 veterans chosen for the event. He said the bonds established in the military stay with you forever and the values that come with being an Elk made it a cinch to befriend everyone in the program.
“I will be eternally grateful for the honor of being selected and sent, it was just something I’ll never forget and I’ll always be thankful for,” Johnson said.