|
INSTITUTED 1931 |
|
JOHN F. GLASS JR POST 2188 |
|
COMMRADES IN ARMS |
|
MIDDLEBORO VFW NEWS |
|
TO APPLY YOU NEED A COPY OF YOUR DD-214 AND TO GET A COPY OF YOUR DD-214 GO TO VFW LINKS ON THIS WEB PAGE AND FOLLOW THE INSTRUCTIONS |
|
TO GET VFW HATS, T-SHIRT ETC. CLICK ON VFW STORE THEN GO TO BOTTTOM OF PAGE AND CLICK ON STORE |
|
TO CHANGE TO OUR POST BRING A COPY OF YOUR VFW CARD AND YOUR HOME MAILING ADDRESS |
|
VFW POST 2188 NEWSLETTER Post Tel and Website: 508 967 6027 for VFW business middleborovfw2188.org January 2012 Words from the Commander Alan Giampietro Next Meeting Date: Wednesday January 25th 2012 Monthly meeting for January 2012: We will be holding our next monthly meeting on Wednesday the 25th of January 2012 at 7pm in the VFW hall with the Cooperation meeting at 5:30pm. Please make sure you put this on your social calendar. There will be a free meal of baked stuffed chicken and all the fixins for the post members in attendance after the meeting and 2 free drinks of your choice from the bar. VAVS event of 18 January a big success: We had a VAVS dinner for the veterans from the Brockton VA hospital on Wednesday the 18th of January 2012 and it went very well thanks to the help of members from the post, the auxiliary, and the Driftwood Lounge. Also a big thanks goes out to Tony, Sandy, and their helpers for preparing a great meal of beef stew. These events mean a lot to the veterans from the hospital. It gives them a chance to get out and about into the community and enjoy the camaraderie of fellow veterans and their helpers. Marshfield is the hosting post of the district 12 meeting in February: The schedule for the district meetings for the rest of this meeting year is as follows: March 12th 2012 Marion, April 9th 2012 Plymouth, May 14th 2012 Halifax, June 11th 2012 Onset. I want to thank the members of our post that joined me in attending the January 2012 district meeting in Whitman. We had a good turnout at the meeting and a great meal knockwurst, baked beans, and sauerkraut after it was over. They discussed a number of things that were relevant to our post and the district. One of the things that was a big issue discussed at the meeting was the need to crack down on organizations that are out there soliciting monetary donations outside of retail establishments in our district and also telemarketing our communities in the name of helping out veterans in need. Almost all of these organizations have such high overhead by virtue of having to hire companies that do the telemarketing for them or having to hire individuals to work at the retail establishments that in most cases less than 15% of the money raised goes to helping out veterans in any way, shape, or form. Even the money that goes to helping veterans from these fund raisers seldom if ever goes to helping local veterans regardless of what the individuals that are soliciting the money say. If you run across a situation where you are telephonically solicited or encounter one of these fund raising groups out and about at retail establishments soliciting contact Paul Provencher the Director of Veterans’ Services for the town of Middleborough at 508 958 3557 and he’ll notify the proper authorities so they can determine if the fund raiser is at least legal to solicit in the state of MA Those that are going to attend the district meetings meet in the driftwood Lounge prior to 6:30pm on the nights of the meeting and we car pool from there. Those that drive get a $10 stipend for using their car. I hope to see as many of you there as possible. Also remember that the hosting post puts on a no cost meal at the end of each meeting Wounded warrior fund raising project: Each State Commander has a major fund raising project that he works on during his 1 year tenure. This year it is the Wounded Warrior project. Our post will have $5.00 blue ribbons and $10.00 red ribbons available from the barmaid . Once the ribbon is purchased by you your name will be written on it and it will be posted on the designated wall in the lounge for all to see that you’re supporting the Wounded Warrior project. The Wounded Warrior Project is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to "honor and empower wounded warriors" of the United States Armed Forces. "The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) works to raise awareness and enlist the public's aid for the needs of severely injured service men and women, to help severely injured service members aid and assist each other, and to provide unique, direct programs and services to meet their needs."[ Meeting held with 2 of our local State Representatives to discuss issues dealing with veterans on Thursday the 12th of January 2012: State Representatives Orall and Calter met with about 20 local veterans to cover a number of veterans’ related topics. Representative Straus canceled out of attending the meeting at the last minute. The discussion dealt with both state and federal aid and assistance for veterans and their family members in such areas as financial assistance, jobs, retraining, fuel assistance, education and a number of other issues. The issue of the state cutting power to the lights shining on the flag at the American Legion Rotary across from Friendlys’ was addressed by representative Orall. She’d followed up on this since the December meeting she’d had with local veterans and found out that the state appears to be willing to install a solar lighting system for the flag pole. This would do away with the possibility that any electrical problems with lights on the flag will impact the safety of those using the rotary due to the outage of the blinking warning lights around the rotary. Representative Orall was going to follow-up with the MA highway department to make sure that the problem gets resolved. Our post was well represented at the meeting with the representatives. Representative Calter painted a very realistic but yet gloomy picture of the financial state of the country and the reaction of federal government to try and get its’ financial house in order. He said that services across the boards will be significantly impacted by the reforms and budget cutting that needs to be done. He said as much as he hated to say it that aid to veterans would be impacted by these measures also. He did say the financial health of the state is very good at this time but that with the cuts that the federal government needs to do he’s not sure how long the state will continue to be financially sound. Overall all that attended the meeting felt that it was very worthwhile and informative. They felt that the 2 state representatives that did attend the meeting listened to the issues and concerns and were genuinely concerned about helping where they could with the issues presented. Chaplain Notes by Richard Ray
Post member Howard Marshall is still having problem getting those legs of his working the way he wants them. He’s under gone some more testing and is in treatment for a couple of things that should help him along in his recovery process.
As for myself, I’m still trying to get back my strength and health. I have new hearing aids on order and they will hopefully help me along the way to be able to hear a bit better.
If there are any other of our comrades or their family members sick or in distress we are sorry that we have not mentioned it in this section. It is simply the fact that their situations were not brought to my attention. If you need to get in touch with me please first call the number for the hearing impaired at 1-877-243-2823 then immediately dial my home phone at 508-923-9122.
Word from our Quartermasters Bill Blight Financial status: Although the December financials aren’t yet in from the accountant, I expect December to be another positive month with a small financial gain. We have plans to expand into the ball field for the summer months with Eric Goodnow seeking permits from town hall and quotes being sought for stairs and a buzz lock for the rear door. We’ll be looking for some help to get the area ready and having a few horse shoe pits installed. I’m looking forward to enjoying that first cold beer as I relax under an umbrella while I watch the first horse shoe game. I hope you’ll join us when the time comes. We continue to work to upgrades and improvements in the kitchen infrastructure as we look for a veggie crisper and oil filtering system. We will continue to work on small improvements that will make the lounge a fun place for everyone, attract more members, and increase our revenues.
Legislative Officer Bill Blight
The Massachusetts RMV will be up and running by the end of January 2012 with the option to have the word “Veteran” appear on your driver’s license or ID card. They thought they’d be up and running at the start of the new year but they just didn’t have everything in place in time. To get the veterans’ designation on your license or ID card you’ll need to show the registry a copy of your DD214. If you’re not able to find that or do not have it contact Paul Provencher, the Director of Veterans’ Services for the town of Middleborough at 508 946 2407 and he can more than likely get it for you. If you live out of town contact your local Director of Veterans’ Services. Membership Committee chairman Eric Goodnow
New post member: At our December 2011 membership meeting we reviewed the military records of Shawn Closson and found him to be qualified to be a member of the VFW. The membership committee voted unanimously to bring his application to the general membership at the December 2011 post meeting. The membership voted him into the post. Welcome to you Shawn Closson as a new member to Post 2188 of the VFW.
To all, the annual membership renewals that did not paid before Dec 31 2011missed the early-bird special of saving $5.00 on your renewals. The dues are now $25. I sent out letters to all our unpaid members reminding them to get your memberships paid prior to the end of December 2011 to be able to take advantage of the early-bird special. If you’re a member of the post in financial distress and need help paying your annual membership dues please contact me at the post 508-967-6027.
Word from the Adjutant Eric Goodnow
Food Handlers’ Training: To all members that volunteer at the post and other events that have you working with food it's time to renew your food handler’s permit. We will be contacting the health department to find out their schedule for food handler’s training. I will put that information into the next newsletter.
Holiday wish: I would like to wish everyone a happy new year and thank the management, staff, bartenders, and kitchen staff for all their hard work and the professionalism that they exhibited over the past year. I would like to thank everyone that helped out at the National Guard events, Patriots Sundays events, the Veterans Day breakfast, Flag replacement breakfast, and monthly meeting meals. I would also like to thank everyone that worked hard on the Children’s Christmas party and Adult Christmas party and everyone that decorates the hall and lounge during each festive season. I believe that much of the volunteer work that goes on for these events and activities is because the volunteers care deeply for our Veterans and the lounge. Thank you all and finally a special thanks to Roger Card who pushes me up and down that ramp to the backroom several times a day. Words from Carole Oliver Auxiliary President The need to submit something for this monthly newsletter came upon me way too quickly this month and I wasn’t prepared with my normal update on upcoming events that the auxiliary will be working on over the next few months. So for now I just want to remind the members of the auxiliary to attend our monthly meetings and help out where you’re able with the post events and activities. Service Officer report by Paul Provencher
5 years of writing the VFW newsletter: It hardly seems possible that I’m already in my 5th year of writing the newsletter for post 2188. I just looked back at my directory for these newsletters and it struck me that you guys have been letting me put out the news of the post for much longer than it feels like. I would like to thanks everyone that has been a contributor to the newsletter over the years. I took this over from Walt Campbell who continued to give his handwritten newsletters monthly until this fall. I’d work that into the final product that you received. I guess he thinks I finally have a grasp on things and I’m running solo except for articles from the various officers in the post. I want to thank you all for giving me the opportunity to do this for the post.
The final count of Middleborough veterans that passed away in 2011 is 64: With the passing of 7 veterans in December of 2011 that brought the final count of deceased veterans in our town to 63 for the year. The breakdown is as follows: 33 WWII veterans, 10 Korean War veterans, 9 Cold War veterans, 4 Vietnam War veterans, 4 Vietnam era veterans, and 4 peacetime veterans. Our WWII veterans are now in their mid 80s and older and as you can see they are the ones, by far, that are passing on the quickest. They are followed by the Korean War veterans that are also up there in age.
Flag at 1/2 mast in the Middleborough Veterans’ Memorial Park: The flag in the Middleborough Veterans’ Memorial Park is lowered to half staff on the burial date of Middleborough veterans. The names of the veterans that passed away thus far in 2011 are: January: Charles Romsey, WWII veteran, AL, Dale Heldman, WWII veteran, OPVA, honors rendered, Richard Nelson, Cold War veteran of the Army, Bobby Lapham, Vietnam veteran, USMC, VFW, honors rendered. February: Alden Sinnott, WWII Army veteran, Arthur Gamache, WWII Army veteran, AL honors rendered, Arthur Balzotti, WWII Army veteran, honors rendered, Ray Perry, Cold War USMC veteran, honors rendered, Arvid (Hank) Zimmerman Jr., Cold War Navy veteran, honors rendered, Terrance Murphy, Army Cold War, John Cavanaugh Jr. Coast Guard WWII, Joseph Powers Jr. Koren War Navy veteran, John Burns, WWII Coast Guard March: Robert Dan, Army, WWII, Robert Brooks, Navy, Korean War, Ed Hurley, Air Force & USMC reserves, cold war era, honors rendered, Tom Jackson, MANG, peacetime, honors rendered, Coast Guard March: Robert Dan, Army, WWII, Robert Brooks, Navy, Korean War April: Edmond Yarusites, Army, WWII, VFW, Honors rendered, Herbert Sears, Air Force WWII, VFW, John Jennette, Air Force, OPVA., Howard Schofield, Navy, WWII, Wilfred Dumas, Army, WWII May: Harold Panesis, WWII Army, VFW, Richard Walker, George Wager, June: Lloyd Maranville, Army, WWII, honors rendered, William Mc Mahon, WWII, VFW and AL, honors rendered, Ed Perry, Korean War, Donald Boucher,Vietnam War, VFW, honors rendered, Norman Massey, Army, WWII and retired military, July: Marvin Cohen, Korean War, Peter Gobel, Navy peace time veteran, Anthony Iampietro, WWII, Army, John Deane Army, Korean War August: Henry Lavalley, WWII, Navy, AL, DAV, honors rendered, William Gaudette, WWII, Navy, VFW, honors rendered, Benjamin Pike, Army Reserves, Robert Beaudreau, Army, WWII, September: William Caswell, Army WWII, William Jacintho, Army, Vietnam Era, Barry Michael Rullo, USMC, Vietnam, honors rendered, Harold Roberts, Army, WWII, October: Frank Keach, Navy, Korean War, Frank Mc Clland Jr. Army, WWII, honors rendered, William Condon, Navy, Peacetime military, AL. honors rendered, Alfred Piquette, Army, WWII, Henry Gates, Navy, WWII, VFW, AL honors rendered, Robert Maree, Army, Vietnam Era, Kenneth Downing, Air Force, Korean War, Joseph Stinson, USMC, WWII, November: Charles Conrad, WWII, Army Air Corps, honors rendered, John Rockwell, WWII Army Air Corps, past commander of the AL, Herbert Cowan, Navy Seebees, WWII. William Hannon, Army, WWII, John White Army WWII, December: William Goodrum Air Force, Vietnam era, David Felker, Navy, Korean War, Stephen Graham, Army, AL, Vietnam era, honors rendered, Louis Jackson, Navy, Korean War, honors rendered, Howard Burleigh, Army, WWII, Michael Valair, Army Peacetime, Gregory Logan, Army, Vietnam, honors rendered.
|