NAMPA, Idaho — What started off as a small get together for veterans looking for a place to share coffee, donuts, and stories with other veterans, has now grown to become the largest monthly gathering in the state of Idaho, according to the Warhawk Air Museum.
The Kilroy Coffee Klatch was held at the Warhawk Museum in Nampa on Tuesday with hundreds of veterans in attendance from across Idaho from every branch of the military and from different eras.
A museum full of men and women with lots of stories to tell.
"This is a Soviet Union, Russian built MIG 21 and I spent three years flying this airplane, teaching U.S. fighter pilots how to beat this airplane,” said Ted Thompson, a Cold War Veteran. “So that when they faced it in combat, they already knew that the U.S. builds much better airplanes, and we train our pilots much better."
The Museum is a very special place for Idaho veterans.
"This is a very hallowed ground for veterans from everywhere to come here because this museum has preserved the personal histories of men and women who have served our country since World War One," said Sue Paul, the Co-founder of the Warhawk Air Museum.
This event started with a handful of veterans and has grown since.
“We started the Kilroy Coffee Klatch in 2001, with 15 World War II veterans,” Paul said. “Now, we average 275 to 300 veterans every month and it’s growing.”
Many of the veterans in attendance Tuesday morning, say the first of every month is marked on their calendars.
"I'll tell you what, it's fantastic because you get to talk to other veterans, you get to understand what they went through," said Larry Ensminger, a Vietnam Veteran.
The sense of camaraderie is what brings the veterans back and helps add more to the group.
"It's absolutely a feeling of belonging,” Thompson said. “I felt that from the day I walked in here, first met Sue and the small number of volunteers we had at the time."
This is a museum with lots of interesting artifacts, but what makes this place unique is more than just the planes.
"So, our saying is the airplanes bring them here, the stories keep them here and that is the truth," Paul said.
"There's so many stories here and I feel when I walk in here that the veterans are talking to me. It's really, really cool," Thompson said.
This event is not the only event for the month, the Warhawk Museum will host their annual Warbird Roundup August 12 and 13. The Museum says this is Idaho’s largest 2-day gathering of historic war planes from across the country.
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