NILES — The Niles District Library will soon bring Talons Out Honor Flight to southwest Michigan on Armed Forces Day.

Talons Out will visit the library at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 19. Following an informational presentation and question and answer period, applications will be available for veterans, chaperones and volunteers to fill out on-site.

“Talons Out Honor Flight” is the southwest Michigan hub for the national Honor Flight Network. The mission of Talons Out is to fly World War II veterans from southwest Michigan, at no charge, to Washington, D.C. to visit the World War II Memorial.

Launched in April 2013, the Talons Out hub flew its first mission in October. Twenty-one veterans traveled to see their memorial and be honored.

Since the first mission in 2013, Talons Out has flown more than 920 veterans to Washington, D.C., with another 250 planned in 2018. Priority status is given to WWII vets, as well as terminally ill veterans from any other conflict.  In June of 2016, as the number of WWII vets declined, Talons Out began accepting applications from Korean War Veterans.

Talon Out is an all-volunteer organization which operates strictly on the generous donations of the community. Ninety-eight cents of every dollar donated to the organization goes directly toward flying veterans to Washington, D.C.

Additional information about the organization can be found at their website: TalonsOutHonorFlight.org, or by calling (269)-273-4545.