The GHS cheerleaders had an amazing opportunity to welcome home the Stars and Stripes Honors flight at the Milwaukee Airport earlier this month.

This was the first time that the cheer team has ever participated in this event, and it went extremely well overall. When the cheer team first arrived at the airport one of the coordinators explained why the honors flight is so important to the veterans. 

“Most of our team did not know that the Vietnam Veterans were treated poorly when they returned home, and the Honor Flights are a way to give them the hero’s welcome home they deserved 50 years ago.  Our team was deeply touched by the outpouring of love and admiration shown to our veterans by family and friends,” Cheer Coach Tina Zamjahn said.

The GHS cheerleaders lined up at the end of the honors parade to greet the veterans after they walked through the airport. The cheerleaders flipped and stunted and put on a fun show for the veterans and their families to watch.

Sophomore cheerleader Makayla Southern’s experience with the honors flight was a little different than the others. She got the opportunity to greet her own Grandfather off of the honors flight, “I got to show my Grandfather how much I care, and appreciate him for all that he has done,” Southern said.

All of the cheerleaders agree that this was a heartwarming experience that they are so glad they had the opportunity to be a part of.

“Seeing the emotions of the veterans and their families was priceless and something I will remember forever. Especially watching Makayla surprising her grandfather who was on the flight–it made the whole cheer team cry,” senior cheerleader Julia Gnadt said.

All of the cheer team and coaches are hoping to do this again in the future and want as many people as possible to experience the joy they had greeting the brave veterans. “The four hours we spent with the Honor Flight made a profound mark on all of us and none of us will ever forget the evening,” Zamjahn said.