Watch Now: Veterans, spouses take flight on Dream Flights

Mary Jane Wallace climbed into the cockpit of the Boeing Stearman Model 75 biplane. A grin spread across her face and, minutes later, the World War II trainer rumbled across the tarmac of Tri-Cities Aviation toward the runway. The biplane sped up, lifted, and Wallace found herself airborne on a flight made of dreams. "It was wonderful," Wallace, who is originally from Florida, said after she landed minutes later. "It was a great way to honor my husband." Her husband, she said, had served in the U.S. Army and passed away last year. Wallace, along with four other spouses of military veterans and three veterans, took an airplane ride on Dream Flights Tuesday morning. Dream Flights is a program established by the nonprofit organization Ageless Aviation Dreams Foundation, which is dedicated to honoring seniors and military veterans. All those who came to the airport Tuesday were residents of Independence Village, a senior living facility in Johnson City. All eight people who flew had a chance to fly on the gray and yellow-winged Stearman biplane, an open-cockpit plane used for training in World War II. The Boeing craft never saw combat. Darryl Smith, the Dream Flights pilot, said the mission for Dream Flights is to "give back to those who gave." That includes veterans and their spouses. "It's our honor to be here and honor you all," Smith said. Dream Flights was created in 2011 by Darryl and Carol Fisher. Darryl was a pilot, along with his father. The story started when Darryl took a veteran, who lived in a senior living center, on a flight in his plane. The veteran went back with a smile on his face and feeling 20 years younger. "That's when Darryl knew he was onto something," Smith said. So, Dream Flights took flight. The nonprofit started with one plane and now has eight with 15 pilots, Smith said. It has conducted more than 8,300 flights as of Tuesday. The flights are sponsored by Sport Clips, and representatives were on hand at Tri-Cities Airport. Bill Russell, a U.S. Navy veteran from Marion, Virginia, patiently waited for his turn to board the aircraft. He said he was thankful for the opportunity to fly. He took a moment to remember his own family. "My brother was a flier in the Navy," he said. "He would have enjoyed this."