Delaware Senior Veterans Take Flight in Celebration of Service
September 30, 2026 | Uncategorized
Restored World War II-era aircraft gives senior veterans a chance to revisit memories and create new ones
Nine Delaware senior veterans took to the skies Wednesday, September 2, aboard a restored 1942 Boeing Stearman biplane for an experience that was part tribute, part adventure and, for some, a powerful return to another chapter of their lives.
The flights were part of Dream Flights, a national nonprofit program that provides senior veterans with free flights in restored World War II-era aircraft. The Delaware Health Care Facilities Association (DHCFA) coordinated the event for veterans living in its member long-term care communities.
For the veterans who participated, the day offered more than a flight above Delaware Airpark. It was an opportunity to be recognized for lives of service while surrounded by family members, friends, caregivers and fellow residents.
Each veteran received a 15-minute flight at approximately 1,000 feet above the ground in the open-cockpit aircraft, the same type of plane once used to train U.S. military aviators during World War II. The aircraft was piloted by Darryl Fisher, founder and president of Dream Flights.
Delaware Senior Veterans Dream Flights Bring Memories Back to Life Among those taking flight was 89-year-old Terry Priebe, a resident of Gilpin Hall in Wilmington and a former U.S. Navy lieutenant and pilot.
Gilpin Hall resident Terry Priebe, 89, a former U.S. Navy lieutenant and pilot, takes to the skies.
103-year-old Helen Knapp of Kentmere, who served in the U.S. Women’s Navy Reserve during World War II, stayed on the ground, but celebrated this special day.
Gilpin Hall Executive Director Paul Smiley, a Marine veteran who served as a Marine Airwing ground support mechanic from 1984 to 1989, accompanied Priebe to the event.
For Smiley, the experience brought back memories of his own military service.
“It was so nostalgic,” Smiley said. “During my time in the Marines in the 1980s, we would start equipment and watch it all running. We’d watch the fighter jets taking off. I forgot how great it was to be around airplanes!”
But watching Priebe climb into the Stearman was even more meaningful.
“He was over the moon,” Smiley said.
As Priebe settled into the aircraft and looked at the controls, memories from his years as a Navy pilot came rushing back.
“He said, ‘It all came back to me,’” Smiley recalled.
Priebe’s son later saw video from the event and shared with Smiley how meaningful the experience had been for his father.
“There are few gifts that are special and wonderful in life,” he said. “This was one.”
Dream Flights Honor Senior Veterans Through Aviation
That sense of rediscovery is at the heart of Dream Flights. Since 2011, the organization says it has honored more than 8,300 veterans living in senior communities across the country through free flights in restored WWII-era biplanes.
“Our mission is to give back to those who gave,” Fisher said. “These veterans gave us our freedoms, they fought for us, they sacrificed, and this is our way of saying thank you.”
The event also gave family members, caregivers and community members an opportunity to recognize veterans not only for their military service, but for the lives they have continued to lead and the experiences they carry with them.
DHCFA member communities identified veterans who wanted to participate, bringing together residents from communities throughout Delaware.
Delaware Veterans Represent Generations of Military Service
The nine veterans who took flight ranged in age from 66 to 95 and represented the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force.
Their military experiences spanned several eras, including the Korean War and Vietnam War eras. The group included veterans who served as pilots, paratroopers, mechanics and in other military roles.
The event also recognized veterans who attended but did not take flight, including:
- 104-year-old Harry Grandel of Kentmere Rehabilitation & Skilled Nursing, a U.S. Army and U.S. Army Air Corps veteran who served during the World War II and Korean War eras.
- 103-year-old Helen Knapp of Kentmere, who served in the U.S. Women’s Navy Reserve during World War II.
- 89-year-old Harry Sharp of Kutz Rehabilitation and Nursing, a U.S. Navy veteran who served as a boiler technician aboard the USS Basilone during the Vietnam War era.
Kentmere has provided rehabilitation and skilled nursing services in Wilmington for more than a century.
The veterans who took flight received signed Dream Flight baseball caps, while the World War II veterans had the opportunity to sign their names on the tail of the historic aircra
Honoring Veterans in Delaware Long-Term Care Communities
For DHCFA, the event was an opportunity to honor the people at the heart of Delaware’s long-term care communities and celebrate the experiences, accomplishments and contributions of older adults.
For the veterans who climbed into the Stearman, the experience offered something that cannot always be captured in photographs or words: the chance to feel, for a few unforgettable minutes, the freedom of flight and reconnect with memories from their past.
Sometimes, a flight can take someone somewhere entirely unexpected.
For these veterans, it brought a little piece of the past back to life.
About Dream Flights
Dream Flights is a nonprofit program that provides free flights to senior veterans in restored World War II-era aircraft. The 15-minute flight took each veteran about 1,000 feet off the ground. The organization says it has honored more than 8,300 veterans since 2011. The veterans flew in a restored 1942 Boeing Stearman biplane, a type of aircraft historically used to train U.S. military aviators during World War II.