As an educator, Ron Maxson had been to the nation’s capital many times on tours with students, but the Vietnam era U.S. Army veteran never quite experienced Washington D.C. like he did on Sept. 21.
Maxson, 78, was selected as one of 99 veterans to take the one-day Eastern Iowa Honor Flight #39 from Cedar Rapids and said the experience was like none other in his life, drafted into the Army in 1968 and serving until 1970 as a Specialist E-5, appointed as a chief official for line of duty and casualty investigations in the 2nd Army Division at Fort Hood, Texas.
The day started at 5:30 a.m. in Cedar Rapids, flying with 61 wheelchair veterans who all signed up for the long day of visiting monuments, war memorials and the Arlington National Cemetery. It was the first honor flight from Cedar Rapids for over a year, put on hold during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A teacher in the West Liberty Schools for 53 years including 22 as a substitute teacher, Maxson, who retired in 2000, also coached sports in the community for 43 years including football, basketball and track, now working as an official starter in track meets throughout the state including the Drake Relays. He was even inducted into the Iowa Association of Track Coaches Hall of Fame in 2016.
He said he was fortunate to get the job he did in the Army, never seeing action in Vietnam, although seeing a lot of the results of the war in Southeast Asia. Drafted into the position like most soldiers in the day, Maxson said he initially reported to Fort Des Moines and was lucky enough to get a desk job, reporting to either a second lieutenant or a general, spending his days contacting families and sending others to address families who may have lost sons or daughters, but not as war casualties. “They might have been shot in a hunting accident, a car wreck, their parents were killed, things like that,” Maxson explained.
Maxson said being a graduate of the Upper Iowa University may have helped keep him away from service in Vietnam, calling it a “miracle” he never got the call to go overseas during his time of service. “I kept waiting and waiting and it never happened,” he said.
Maxson said he learned about the honor flight when he saw on television they were campaigning for veterans to be part of the first flight of 2021, getting together more than three months earlier. He said his first meeting in Cedar Rapids with the Honor Flight team surprised him – thinking it was more of an informational meeting, but instead, he learned it was a meeting telling him he was selected to take the flight.
He said the morning of the flight wasn’t all that momentous but said every wheelchair veteran had their own personal escort as he did as well.
Maxson was no rookie touring Washington, noting he’d been to the White House three times and to D.C. four times with West Liberty Students who annually toured on a one-week trip.
He’d been to all of the monuments, including when the Vietnam Wall was just being built on the capital grounds and he also was greeted by Senator Chuck Grassley and U.S. Representative Marianenette Miller-Meeks in Washington, getting an opportunity to ask them questions
He said one of the memorial moments during this trip was a U.S. Marine Corps Silent Drill Team that entertained the veterans, noting the show they put on was “tremendous.”
He said the visit to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington National Cemetery was also heartwarming. “It still brings tears to my eyes,” he said, noting the ceremony there was “incredible,” calling it his favorite memorial.
But what will stick with Maxson the most was the reception the veterans received upon landing in Cedar Rapids that evening at about 9:30 p.m. He said they started down the tarmac before they were held up – eventually unveiling a throng of hundreds of people there to greet the veterans home – something Vietnam Veterans in particular never got to experience.
“It was emotional. When they opened the doors, there must have been 200 people there, three to four deep on both sides,” he said. “People were reaching out to touch our hands. It was a big thing up there.”
“I had tears in my eyes,” he said, noting there were signs like “We are here because you were there.” He called the reception a “miracle,” noting he was never so proud to be an American soldier.
Maxson lives in rural West Liberty with his wife, Mary. The couple raised two sons, including Mark, who is a teacher in North Liberty, as well as Kent, a teacher in Nairobi, Africa.
Maxson said he continues to run to stay in shape around his neighborhood while he also plays golf at West Liberty Golf & Country Club and stays active in various other ways.
He said that running helped him during the trip, noting it was a lot of walking despite having a bus take the veterans from place to place.
He said he never anticipated getting the opportunity to go on the Honor Flight, but was glad he did. He says he knows a lot of Veterans that have never been on the trip and highly encouraged them to take part.