Two women, connected by the legacy of their husbands.
The wives of WWII Veterans met for the first time as they got their first look at honor plaques for their husbands. They both beamed with pride as they reflected.
"He was a hero, you know. Many times over," said Margaret Blakely, the wife of a WWII Veteran.
She is referring to her husband, WWII pilot Everett Blakely. The 102-year-old says they met at an officers dance in Sioux City, Iowa and the rest is history.
"We had a wonderful marriage. He was a kind and wonderful person," said Blakely.
Everett Blakely was a highly decorated pilot of a B-17 bomber with the “Bloody Hundredth” bombardment group of the 8th Air Force in Europe.
He was recently featured in the "Masters of the Air" series produced by Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg.
A co-pilot in WWII, John Hamon’s wife, 97-year-old Eva Hamon, says her husband was shot down and captured by the Germans on New Year's Eve.
Shortly after, he became a prisoner of war until being liberated when the war ended.
"He talked a lot about his time in the service and we wrote everything down, and he loved the service. He loved the Airforce," said Hamon.
While their husbands never knew each other, their plaques now hang together on the Wall of Honor at the Veterans Memorial Museum.
"Today is the first time I've seen it. I heard about it, and I saw pictures of it, but this today is the first. It's a great honor for everyone to see," said Hamon.
Both women say that meeting each other and seeing the plaques for the first time was very special.
"I was looking forward to meeting her, and I think we were both very fortunate to have the husbands we had, and the memories we have," said Hamon.
Blakely says the plaque reminds her of the past, and the friends she made with similar experiences.
"Three of us whose husbands were bomber pilots and went overseas. The widows stayed in Chicago and decided to get an apartment, and so we did. The Chicago Tribune came out and took our picture," said Blakely.
They hope people come check out the Wall of Honor.
"I hope they will remember what happened because people forget over time. It would be nice for people to know more about what happened during World War 2 and how the United States went to Europe and helped save the world. I think that's important," said Hamon.
