Reaching 10,000- Rodney Ellis, Post Vietnam Veteran

Honor Flight Columbus is proud to be flying our 10,000th Veteran to Washington D.C. on October 10, 2024. To commemorate this significant milestone, we will be sharing the inspiring stories of 10 Veterans. Each story we share will represent 1,000 of the 10,000 Veterans we have had the honor of flying. Follow along as we honor, share, and celebrate the heroes of our country.

Rodney Ellis was born May 6, 1959 in Fredericksburg, Virginia. After graduating high school, he attended community college for two years in Virginia before joining the Navy. Ellis decided that he wanted “to see the world.” A six-year enlistment was just the ticket to “get his heart pumping” and enabled his entry into Advanced Electronics. Ellis started his service on June 13, 1979, and began “the adventure of a lifetime.”

Boot camp was the first time Ellis had ever been away from home. After Boot Camp in Orlando, Florida, he attended Electronics Training at the Great Lakes Naval Station for a year and a half. He was moved to Submarine Communications in Athens, Greece which was considered “isolated duty.” After Greece, Ellis was sent to NCS Scottland as an Electronic Technician. His final station was Little Creek, Virginia where he was with the Special Warfare Group and detached to the USS Pensacola.

Ellis was honorably discharged on January 14, 1988, while serving in the Special Boat Unit 20 at Little Creek. It was a cold season—both inside the water and out. The tradition fordischarge from the unit was to be tossed from the pier by the tightly knit group. After receiving his papers and then having them quickly taken back from him, Ellis was tossed from the pier with the help of the entire division. He would like it benoted that it did in fact take the entire group to throw him into the water.

After his discharge from the Navy, Ellis settled in Columbus, Ohio for a job prospect. He has remained with the same company for 37 years and counting. Just two years after he left the military in 1988, Ellis married his wife Pamela in Franklin County Ohio. Together they raised a family of three children. Today, Ellis is semi-retired and while no longer in the Navy, he tries to be near the water fishing whenever he can—though his time volunteering with Honor Flight Columbus certainly makes that a challenge.

For 3-4 years, Ellis has been working Ground Crew for HFC. Ground Crew is responsible for setting up the Welcome Home celebration near the ticketing area of the Columbus Airport. The Ground Crew team, which Ellis heads, makes it possible for around 2,000 grateful Americans to attend the celebration after every flight. But it wasn’t until this summer, 2024, that he took his own Honor Flight.

Previous staff member Karen and Guardian David Oiler had consistently encouraged Ellis to apply. Finally, Karen opened her laptop and had him sign up to fly. Having coordinated the Welcome Homes for some time, he felt he knew all about the flights. Once he took his flight, Ellis understood that the experience was unlike anything else.

“Flight Day was a great experience, with a bunch of [people] who I didn’t deserve to be with,” recounted Ellis. “They had been through Hell and back, and I had just been through some sh*t.”

Ellis perfectly articulated that Honor Flight Columbus exists to serve all eligible Veterans regardless of whether they were in combat, rank, or where they were stationed. Now he has joined the ranks of 10,000 other Veterans who have received this well-deserved trip—a trip full of camaraderie and human connection.

Upon reflecting on his service, Ellis shared the importance of military service in maturing, teaching skills, and learning to work as a team. He challenges other Veterans by saying, “[You] NEED to go. You owe it to yourself.” Honor Flight Columbus is proud to have Rodney Ellis as a member of our family.