Attorney Gen. Mike DeWine this week announced $971,000 in grants to eight Ohio veterans-service organizations. The recipient groups include five Ohio chapters of Honor Flight. Since 2005, the organization has transported hundreds of veterans to see memorials in Washington D.C.
Honor Flight Dayton President and Director Jim Salaman says the money will go a long way toward expanding services to veterans.
“That’s enough for two flights, or approximately 200 veterans, that will be able to make the trip next year that, previously to that, we would not have been able to take because of funding,” he says.
Each of the Honor Flight chapters will receive $115,000, and three other veterans groups will receive amounts totaling nearly $300,000.
The funds come from assets seized from the Bobby Thompson scam case. Thompson, who’s real name was John Donald Cody, ran a fake charity called the U.S. Navy Veterans Association.
Reports say he took in millions of dollars from donors nationwide. He was eventually caught, arrested, and convicted, then sentenced to 28 years in prison.
