SPOKANE — The band struck up a patriotic song just as the honored guests began to descend the departure ramp.

The nearly 100 veterans who wheeled and strolled into the ticketing area of the Spokane International Airport were greeted Tuesday evening with music, cheers, banners, signs and hundreds of outstretched hands just waiting to thank them for their service as they returned home from an Inland Northwest Honor Flight.

“It was an honor to be selected,” said Air Force and Vietnam veteran Russell Thomas, 72, of Coeur d’Alene. “The trip was amazing with my fellow combat veterans.”

Thomas’ daughter, Margaret Leuck, with her two daughters and a friend, waited among the hubbub with red, white and blue signs to welcome their hero home.

“It’s a bit overwhelming,” Margaret said. “I didn’t know the turnout was so big.”

She said her dad continues to serve his community every day; he’s active with the Post Falls Veterans of Foreign Wars.

His granddaughter, Sierra Leuck, 18, said she thought the whole thing was “really incredible.”

“It’s the welcome home that they deserve that they didn’t get,” she said. “It’s incredible to see all the love and support here.”

The INW Honor Flight is a part of the Honor Flight Network, a nonprofit that gives America’s veterans an opportunity to see the war and military memorials in Washington, D.C.

“It’s about time these people were recognized,” said Lee Shaver, son-in-law of Honor Flight guest Dr. George Rodkey, 95, of Post Falls, who was a Navy doctor during the Korean War.

“He feels since he was a physician and he wasn’t in the middle of the fighting, that maybe he isn’t as worthy as some of the people,” Shaver said. “But if you think of some of the people he saved, and he was away from his family, he is well worth being included as a representative of the armed forces.”

The Inland Northwest Honor Flight makes two trips a year, one in the spring and one in the fall. The vets get to witness the changing of the guard in Arlington National Cemetery, visit the Women in Service Military Museum and pay their respects at the memorials dedicated to the different branches and wars.

“They pay for nothing and they’re treated like kings, like royalty,” said INW Honor Flight volunteer Barb Nelson, adding that these trips can bring a lot of closure to a veteran of any era.

“Some veterans stop taking their medications and stop having nightmares … they just feel like they don’t need them anymore,” she said. “They find peace with what they did and what they experienced.”

U.S. Navy and Korean War veteran Hal Donahue, 85, of Coeur d’Alene, attended the welcome home celebration to express his thanks to his fellow veterans. He was an Honor Flight guest last spring.

“It’s very, very special,” Donahue said. “We see all the memorials and monuments to everyone who has fought for this country. It’s a very, very special feeling. We were treated like VIPs. I remember we had a motorcycle escort and we did not stop at one stoplight.”

The next INW Honor Flight is scheduled for Sept. 24-25. The annual fundraiser is scheduled for Oct. 6.

Info: www.INWHonorFlight.org