Loring veterans were thankful for the opportunity to come back

- It was a very special weekend for Loring Air Force Base veterans. The weekend was full of many events and a lot of story telling. Veterans stood in groups talking over those old memories and everything that they had done on the base. Many commented that it still felt like a big family. Jim Cross said it was neat to come back and run in to folks who have been here too and been through the military experience. Cross stood with Charles Long who said, "Believe it or not these were my happier days in the military. We always said this was the best flight line they ever had on the face of the earth because of the way it was built.

It wasn't just because of how the base was built or the people that lived there for Ed Shellhase. Even though he has moved far away he still calls Loring home. "We started our family here. I was a newly wed here. I was eighteen years old. I started my Air Force Career here and we absolutely loved it. It's a unique place because of the climate and everything but we had a blast."

The veterans were thankful for the opportunity to come back and enjoy another day on the base. Many like Long said they had always wanted to come back to Maine to see Loring. Shellhase said, "The ability to come back and enjoy the base and be able to go back and look at the areas we used to live, where we used to play, where we used to do all that kind of stuff. I think it's really important for the retirees and the people that used to be stationed here." The veterans had the opportunity to tour parts of the base they had never had the security clearance to go in to before. The base is closed but the memories created there will last forever.