Midway Airport unveils new "American Heroes" portrait exhibit honoring veterans
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Midway International Airport is honoring veterans with a new gallery exhibit.
The South Side airport unveiled "American Heroes: Portraits of Service" on Wednesday. It features portraits of 65 seniors from across the country who served in the Armed Forces during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
Travelers at Midway will be able to read about each of those veterans' experiences through storyboards and plaques included in the exhibit.
"I am blessed by God who brought me safely home. I am proud to have served," said Myron Petrakis, one of the 65 veterans honored in the exhibit.
Petrakis, now 100 years old, served in the Navy during World War II aboard the USS Murrelet, whiche engaged in minesweeping operations the Pacific.
You can find the new display in the pedestrian walkway between the Midway terminal and the CTA Orange Line.
The American Heroes exhibit, which is co-sponsored by Belmont Village Senior Living, continues Midway Airport's longtime legacy of honoring veterans.
Midway is named after the Battle of Midway, a naval battle that helped the U.S. turn the tide in the Pacific in 1942, six months after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor.
The airport also has an exhibit of a Dauntless dive-bomber, one of the naval aircraft used in the Battle of Midway to destroy four Japanese aircraft carriers.