Charlie Turner spent 23 years in the United States Army, fought in Vietnam, and earned the Silver Star for gallantry in combat. When he came home from that war more than 50 years ago, he was catcalled and spat on. This week, the Murrells Inlet veteran stepped off an Honor Flight to Washington, D.C., and found something very different waiting for him at Myrtle Beach International Airport.
Flags and a banner thanking him for his service greeted Turner as he returned to the Grand Strand, according to WPDE. Turner was selected for the trip through Honor Flight, a nonprofit program that takes veterans to Washington to visit the memorials built in their honor, with the outing costing him nothing. For many Vietnam veterans, the station reports, Honor Flight trips offer a chance at recognition and appreciation they did not always receive when they first came home.
Honor Flight began in 2005 with a mission focused on taking World War II veterans to Washington; it later expanded to include Korean and Vietnam War veterans. The national network now consists of more than 125 independent hubs and says it has flown more than 300,000 veterans to the capital. The trips are free for veterans and funded by donations, making Turner’s journey part of a nationwide volunteer effort to bring veterans to the memorials honoring their service. Honor Flight Network’s history and mission describe that expansion.
Turner did not hide how different this reception felt from the one he got decades ago. “Got cat called and spit on. To have this reception from everybody. It's great. Warms my heart,” he said.
Turner’s recollection is personal; the broader story of veterans being spat on at airports has also been debated by historians. Sociologist Jerry Lembcke, a Vietnam veteran, examined the familiar image of antiwar protesters spitting on uniformed troops returning home and concluded that such incidents have not been convincingly documented. That conclusion addresses the often-repeated general story, not what Turner says happened to him. Lembcke’s study of the “spat-upon veteran” narrative traces how it became part of the war’s public memory.
A Daughter's Disbelief at the Turnout
His daughter, Cyndi Moran, described the outpouring of support as overwhelming. “They've been very supportive and loving and it's unbelievable how many people came out today,” she said, according to the same outlet's report.
Turner's military service wasn't the only reason neighbors turned out. Bruce Malick, a member of Turner's church, said Turner has kept serving his community long after his Army career ended, often without seeking any attention for it. “He teaches Sunday school classes. He does a lot of things behind the scenes that nobody knows about. And we just wanted to make sure that he got some spotlight,” Malick said.
A Grand Strand Tradition of Welcoming Veterans Home
Turner's homecoming echoes a scene the Myrtle Beach area has staged before. Back in October 2011, at least 600 people packed the welcome area at Myrtle Beach International Airport to greet a group of 90 Pee Dee and Myrtle Beach-area veterans returning from their own free Honor Flight trip to see the memorial honoring their service, per the same outlet's earlier coverage. That 2011 group was the third set of local veterans to make the Washington trip since the fall of 2010.
The Washington visit also brings veterans to a memorial shaped by a call for public recognition. Vietnam veteran Jan Scruggs helped spur the effort to build the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, which was dedicated in 1982; its granite wall now bears 58,318 names of Americans who died in combat or are listed as missing in action. The site gives Honor Flight participants a place to remember both their service and those who did not return. The National Park Service’s history of the memorial describes its origins and design.
Honor Flights like the one Turner took are made possible by donations and volunteers, and organizers say they give participants a chance to reflect on their own service and the sacrifices of the service members who stood beside them. For Turner, the trip and the welcome home that followed amounted to a long-delayed acknowledgment of what he gave decades ago in Vietnam.
