You will find a local man among those flying in and out of Green Bay this Saturday with some Green Bay Packers alumni in tow. John O’Gara, an 80-year-old Navy veteran from Egg Harbor, will be among the dozens participating in this weekend’s Stars and Stripes Honor Flight “Flight of Champions.” Similar to other programs like Old Glory Honor Flight, Stars and Stripes Honor Flight takes veterans from several different eras on a day-long tour of Washington D.C. The 71st mission carries the extra excitement of having former members of the Packers on board with sister flights taking off from Milwaukee with alumni of the Brewers and Bucks organizations. O’Gara says after years of seeing other veterans go on similar trips and welcoming them home, his family surprised him by signing him up to go on his own trip.

If you want to welcome O’Gara home after the Flight of Champions, you are invited to the Austin Straubel Airport in Green Bay and encouraged to bring banners and signs to thank veterans for their service as they enter the terminal. You are asked to arrive by 6 p.m. so you are ready to give them a rousing welcome when they arrive at 7:30 p.m. Stars and Stripes Honor Flight President Karyn Roelke says that “every flight brings so many smiles, memories, and courageous stories. It truly is an honor to be a part of it all.” Most veterans from Door and Kewaunee counties can contact Old Glory Honor Flight to participate in similar experiences.