(Beaver Dam) 95.3 WBEV’s Justin “The Ninja” Wylesky joined veterans from across the country on a journey to Washington DC as part of the Badger Honor Flight on Saturday. A total of 89 veterans toured the Marine Corps Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, Korean War/Vietnam Veterans/Lincoln Memorials, the World War II Memorial, the FDR Memorial, and the 911 Memorial at the Pentagon.
All branches of the military, except Space Force, were represented. There were 80 Vietnam only veterans, five Korean and Vietnam vets, and four veterans from the Korean War. Wylesky caught up with Vietnam Army Veteran Gerald Pahl from Fall River. Pahl says he had only been to the nation’s capital once prior to the flight.
“I’ve never flown there for free except for a single agent job I got a gift certificate to at a Dodge County Airport.”
Pahl enlisted in 1965 and was stationed at Fort Jackson in South Carolina. In his post military career, Pahl worked as a mail carrier. He says he got in the business because he was helping a neighbor and his wife happened to be the carrier.
“He says to her one day ‘it ain’t much’ he says, ‘maybe you could scholar him right here?’ he asks her,” says Pahl. “I [said] yeah, I’d like to collect in ten weeks. She says, ‘would you like to be my substitute mail carrier?’”
Pahl says he told his neighbor’s wife he would like to give it a try and he liked doing it. After a few years he became the primary mail carrier.
