Lone Star Veterans Group

The Lone Star Veterans Group that meets weekly at the Poplar Business Park is actually an offshoot of the Lone Star Honor Flight program that was founded in Montgomery, Texas, by Brenda Beaven and Duane McFadden, with a lot of help from fellow teacher, Deidre Bussell-Bartholomew. Lone Star Honor Flight was a program founded in 2008 to fly WWII veterans, free of charge, to Washington, DC, to see the WWII memorial. Most WWII veterans had never seen the memorial and many could not afford the cost associated with getting to Washington, DC.

A total of 515 WWII veterans along with 600, or so, guardians, flew to Washington, DC, on a total of five flights. The first flight took place on May 31, 2008, and the last flight was May 22, 2010. A short time before Flight 3 took place, Jack McClanahan, owner of Storage 105 on Hwy 105-W. offered Ms, Beaven office space at his business. At about the same time he started opening his business to a veterans and supporters get-together each Wednesday morning. Donuts and all the coffee one could drink was provided. These get-togethers continued to grow until one could hardly get through the front doors.

In 2012, Jack started developing Poplar Business Park on Old Hwy, 105 behind Storage 105. He devoted an entire office/warehouse complex to the veterans and supporters. This much larger facility has a fully equipped kitchen, a tv/movie room, a library, two bathrooms, and a large meeting room. The first veterans meeting was held in the new facility on October 3, 2012.

Approximately 12 dozen donuts and 15 to 17 gallons of coffee, along with a platter of Ms, Grumuliatis’ sandwiches, are consumed each Wednesday morning. The veterans say that this get-together is the highlight of their week. We have two veterans who travel close to 175 miles round trip to attend the weekly meetings. Jack has offered the facility to the veterans, free of charge, for as long as they wish to meet.