Scott’s View: How to Recognize Veterans of the Past

America’s greatest generation is leaving us. Just 1% of WWII vets are alive today. And one of them is former Army Sergeant Jack Bevan, who served with Patton’s Third Army that liberated the Nazi’s Mauthausen concentration camps. He just turned 100. Jack and his family are long time personal friends of the Higgins family. His grandchildren and our children grew up together in Connecticut. Not too long ago, he gave me tips on how to ski powder on the slopes out west and then showed me how to do it!  And while he’s no longer skiing, Jack is very active and has plans to be with us for a long time. He is a living reminder of the importance of military service. After all, he and his generation saved our world and preserved the freedoms we enjoy today.

Our partners also know the importance of service. Over Memorial Day, as a tribute to those who paid the ultimate sacrifice, JetBlue reserved seat 1A on its Vets in Blue livery (seen here) and draped it with the Prisoner of War / Missing in Action (POW/MIA) flag for the entire day. Across its network, our Vets in Blue Crewmember Resource Group have set up Tables of Honor (also known as Missing Man Tables) to remember the fallen and missing. As one of the executives at JetBlue told us, “We are here today thanks to their heroic acts of selflessness and for that, I am forever grateful.”