Jacksonville Hy-Vee raises funds for veteran honor flight

Jacksonville Hy-Vee shoppers have a direct way to support area veterans this month: donate at checkout, buy a $10 fundraising card or pick up participating items that send a portion of proceeds to the Greater Peoria Honor Flight. The drive began Monday, June 1, at Hy-Vee stores across central Illinois, including Jacksonville, and it is aimed at helping finance a November flight expected to carry about 75 veterans from Central Illinois to Washington, D.C.

The trip is scheduled for Nov. 17, 2026, according to the Greater Peoria Honor Flight calendar. Veterans on that flight are expected to visit Arlington National Cemetery and other memorials in the capital, part of a day the organization describes as an honor for service members from the region. For Morgan County families with military ties, the Jacksonville store gives the fundraiser a local place to land, instead of leaving it as a distant regional effort.

Central Illinois Hy-Vee stores are sponsoring the flight for the second year in a row. Last year, a dozen stores across the region raised $70,000 for the Greater Peoria Honor Flight in September 2025, enough to send 73 veterans on the organization’s fifth flight of that year on Nov. 4, 2025. That kind of turnout shows how grocery-store donations can turn into seats on an aircraft, bus rides through the nation’s capital and a day of recognition that many veterans never received when they came home.

The participating Hy-Vee stores this year include Bloomington, Canton, both Galesburg locations, Jacksonville, Macomb, both Peoria stores and Peru. Hy-Vee says its broader Homefront program, launched in 2013, has donated more than $3.8 million to nonprofits that serve veterans, active-duty service members and their families. The company also supports Veterans Day breakfasts, Honor Flight funding and other veteran-focused efforts.

Honor Flight Network says there are 135 Honor Flight hubs nationwide, and each hub is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit. The Greater Peoria group says its mission is to give veterans from Central Illinois an unforgettable day of honor in Washington, D.C., with additional flights on its 2026 schedule set for June 23, Sept. 8 and Oct. 20.