For seven Ohio veterans, a trip to Washington D.C. brings connection and a look at AI’s possibilities

For one Northeast Ohio veteran, the value of this week’s trip to Washington, D.C., was in the company.

“To share with other veterans is a blessing,” the veteran said.

For another, it was the chance to go at all.

“If it wasn’t for this, I never would have gotten the opportunity.”

They are among seven veterans from across Northeast Ohio taking part in a Meta-sponsored Honor Flight surrounding Veterans Day. Representing the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force, the group departed Cleveland Hopkins International Airport on Monday morning, for a visit centered on their service and the memorials built to honor it.

Their itinerary includes museums, military memorials, special ceremonies and a Nov. 10 celebration. They are scheduled to return home on Veterans Day, Wednesday, Nov. 11.

The Northeast Ohio veterans joined veterans from communities across America including Houston and Indianapolis for a Meta-sponsored national Veterans Day celebration in Washington, D.C.

A different way to experience the memorials

Alongside the recognition of military service, the trips are drawing attention to a newer tool for veterans with vision loss: Meta's AI-powered Ray-Ban glasses that can describe surroundings, identify objects and read text aloud. During the Washington visits, those capabilities can help blind and low-vision veterans experience the memorials honoring their service.

The effort builds on Meta’s commitment to donate 130,000 pairs of AI glasses to blind veterans nationwide. Announced in June, the program pairs the devices with training to help recipients put them to use in everyday life.

In the summer announcement, Don Overton, a blind veteran of the U.S. Army’s 82nd Airborne Division, described what the technology had meant for him.

“When I lost my eyesight in Desert Storm from a bunker explosion, I also lost my independence. The moment I put on my Ray-Ban Meta glasses, I got my independence back,” Overton said.

Dina Powell McCormick, Meta’s president and vice chairman, said in the same announcement that Overton’s work with the company helped shape the initiative.

“When Don Overton worked with our wearables team at Meta to build features that made the Ray-Ban Meta glasses more meaningful to the everyday lives of veterans, we at Meta knew we had to find a way to reach every blind veteran in America,” Powell McCormick said.

For the Blinded Veterans Association, a partner in the initiative, providing the glasses is only part of the work. The organization has developed training to help veterans learn the technology and use it confidently, whether they are reading a document or asking for information about something in front of them.

The association is working with a network of distribution partners, including the American Council of the Blind, Lighthouse Guild and National Industries for the Blind. Participating nonprofits can also apply through TechSoup to receive glasses for veterans in their communities, with representatives required to complete a training course and provide instruction to recipients.

Demand has been strong enough that the association has placed new requests on a waitlist as it processes applications.

A welcome home in Cleveland

For the Northeast Ohio group, the final stop will be back where the trip began.

The veterans are scheduled to land at Cleveland Hopkins at 7 p.m. Wednesday. Organizers have asked supporters to gather in the airport’s arrivals common area at 6:30 p.m. to welcome them home.

The homecoming is part of the tribute—a chance for the Northeast Ohio community to thank the veterans for their service and welcome them back home.