WASHINGTON, D.C. (LEX 18) — In a sea of brothers in arms, Phil and David Craddock share an even deeper bond: brothers by blood.
The duo from Union, Kentucky got to experience an Honor Flight together over the weekend, visiting Washington D.C. for the first time.
“What do you think about that?” one of the organizers asked Phil, looking out over the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool. “It’s pretty neat, aint it?” Phil responded.
The Honor Flight was jam packed with stops at several memorials, but one moment resonated more than others, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
“So many names,” said Phil, struck by the seemingly endless list of names on the Vietnam Wall.
The granite v-shaped wall is inscribed with the names of 58,000 servicemen and women who were killed or remain missing from the conflict spanning two decades.
“I was 20 when I was drafted,” said David. “I guess I was about 21, probably younger,” said Phil.
Phil served in the Air Force in Vietnam for four years, and David did two years in the Army, serving in Germany.
“It's been a long time, but sometimes it doesn't feel like it's been that long,” said David. “Makes you grow up.”
All these years later, the dates and names are foggy, but the weight of the price that was paid isn’t lost on the brothers.
“I didn't realize there were that many,” Phil said again.
“There are just so many of the, and it just seemed like people didn't care,” said David.
Knowing they very well could be names on the wall instead of visitors standing before it, the Craddock brothers offered a reminder that freedom isn’t free.
“I always took freedom for granted, but I don't anymore, that's for sure,” said Phil.
