Washington County, WI – On Saturday, April 22, 2023, 89-year-old Army veteran Paul Weis of Jackson, WI, will be joining other vets on the Stars & Stripes Honor Flight along with an appointed chaperone.
Weis was drafted into the US Army on May 25, 1956, during the Korean War era after the Armistice was signed as part of the Korean Defense Group that defended South Korea during the Korean War. “Basically, we put things back together after they’d been blown apart,” said Weis.
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Weis served two years in the Army and was discharged in May of 1958.
He began his term of service as a cartography (map maker) as he had originally worked for Rand McNally and Company at the time he was drafted.
His position as a cartographer was short-lived as he was transferred to an engineering group for the remainder of his term.
“I belonged to the 557th Engineering Detachment which was part of a bigger battalion engineering group,” said Weis, “We were involved with water supply, gathered technical intelligence and we were the custodian of the true intelligence library.” Weis described the library as ‘any information regarding the enemy’s equipment, how many Howitzers they had, or anything we could find that described the enemy’s potential.’
Weis attained the rank of Specialist 3 and was Soldier of the Month while serving in Seoul, South Korea.
Weis is one of eight veterans from Washington County, WI
on the April 22, Honor Flight
Weis and his wife, Sharon, have been married for 38 years, and have five children: Jeanne, Joanne, Catherine, Joseph and Caroline. They also have five grandchildren.
Weis’s son, Joseph, from Denver, CO, will be accompanying him on the Honor Flight as his chaperone.
Following his honorable discharge from the Army, Weis returned to his place of work at Rand McNally. “There was a law in place that if you were drafted into the service, you could return to your former place of work and they had to give you a position back that was equal to your previous job,” said Weis, “I went back to Rand McNally and drew maps for one year.”
Weis then began to work with computers, spending 46 years as a programmer, then in management, followed by sales, then working on the technical side for the last 30 years of his employment.
“It’s been a long time of waiting for the Honor Flight because my dates didn’t fit the requirements to go,” said Weis, “I have seen Arlington and the Korean War Memorial, but I have not seen the Vietnam Veterans War Memorial yet.”
Locally, Weis belongs to American Legion 486 in Jackson and is a member of the American Legion Honor Guard. He also belongs to the Jackson VFW Post 7240.
Weis speaks highly of the youth in the area whom he has met through the veteran’s organizations, “Living Word helped us put flags on veteran’s graves at a cemetery. They asked questions and were interested. The American Legion also participates in Youth Government Day when students throughout Washington County gather to hear an educational speaker and tour the government facility.”
Stars and Stripes Honor Flight is the Milwaukee area hub of the Honor Flight Network. Founded in 2008, Stars and Stripes Honor Flight has flown more than 7,600 WWII, Korean War, and Vietnam War veterans from southeastern Wisconsin on a one-day, all-expense-paid trip to Washington D.C.
