South Platte Memorial Post 7356

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1 South Platte Memorial Post 7356 Commander s Corner Welcome to March, shipmates! We re heading towards the end of the membership year and we only need 30 more members to make 100%. Always keep recruiting in mind when you re out and about, if you meet someone who might be qualified, but are too shy to have that conversation, send them my way! I ll even give you recruiter credit for them, lets just make them a member. Membership is an important part of the Veterans of Foreign Wars. Our numbers make us strong, so lets get out there and contact our friends and neighbors to see if they are eligible to join. Encourage current and new members to choose Life Membership, and more specifically the Life Membership Installment Plan, it is affordable and will ultimately save our new members a lot of money over time. IMPORTANT Notice: We are ramping up for our Veteran Fair on April 23. Currently we have commitments from: VFW Veteran Service Officer, Social Security, Platte Co. Health Dept. doing blood pressure screenings, Humana Insurance, Park University to talk about education benefits, and many others! The postcard is listed on the second page if you know of a veteran or family of a veteran, please cut it out and pass the information along! We are here to take care of veterans, and what better way to start that conversation than to educate ourselves and each other on what benefits are available. This would be a great event to invite a new member to, or a potential member! We are at almost 500 members encourage your spouse to join the Auxiliary and if you have any military buddies, make sure you remind them of all the VFW has done to preserve veteran benefits throughout the years. Post 7356 PARKVILLE, MO NO ONE DOES MORE FOR VETERANS Rick Butler, Commander Post Officers - Commander Rick Butler Judge Advocate Larry Maher Sr. Vice Commander Robert Bennett Chaplain John Bugg Jr. Vice Commander Lloyd Blair Surgeon Mike Vogt Quartermaster Robert Eckerle year Trustee John Hoffman Adjutant Tara K. Arteaga year Trustee Jerry Felker Post PSO Philip Duncan year Trustee Debra Anderson Page 1

2 The updated Missouri Benefits and Resource Guide for Veterans and Military is now available online! You can download a pdf copy of the guide at: Order your VFW Uniform Cap today! Department Conventions are quickly approaching and officer changes will be taking place. The peak season for ordering Membership/Officer caps is April to July, when the VFW Store processes over 10,000 cap orders! During this period, it can take up to 10 weeks to receive your cap. To place your order today, go to or call The Post Quartermaster has general caps available at the Post. VFW Department of Missouri Convention Information The 2016 Department Convention will be held at the Ramada Oasis, Springfield, Missouri, June 9 June 12, Hospitality room information will be mailed to District Quartermasters and posted on the Missouri web. This is a great opportunity to see the VFW in action on a larger scale, and new members are encouraged to attend, if possible. Reservations for sleeping rooms became available on February 1. Currently, sleeping room reservations are restricted to a three (3) day stay and may be made by calling the hotel direct at Be sure to let them know you are with the VFW. The below image is what will be sent out on post cards to over 2,100 potential members. Please feel free to cut out the image and distribute to anyone/location you know might have veterans and their families who could benefit from the information that will be at the fair. Maybe your church s bulletin boards. Page 2

3 With a Life Membership, you will no longer pay annual dues and receive a 10% discount on VFW Store merchandise for one year. CONSIDER LIFE MEMBERSHIP! 2016 Platte County Storm Spotter Training On March 21, 2016 from 7:00 PM to 9:00 PM, the Platte County Sheriff's Office Emergency Management along with the City of Riverside's Emergency Management are hosting the 2016 Platte County Storm Spotter Training. This training is conducted by the National Weather Service Forecast Office out of Pleasant Hill and is designed to train SkyWarn Severe Weather Spotters. The training is free and you are not required to register ahead of time. Topics Covered include: *Severe Thunderstorm Basics *How to Visually identify Severe Storm Features *How to Report Observed Severe Weather *Storm Spotter Safety If you have ever wanted to become more involved with severe storm spotting, or just want to learn more about severe thunderstorms, then this is the course for you. Training will be held at: Park Hill High School Auditorium 7701 NW Barry Road Kansas City, MO Contact: Sergeant Jeffrey Shanks (816) Reference Number: $10 Raffle tickets are available for sale All weekly prizes will be drawn on Friday of each week. Monthly prizes will be drawn the 1st day of each month and special drawings will be held on Flag Day, Memorial Day, 4th of July, September 11, Veterans Day and Pearl Harbor Day. Raffle Results can be viewed at: Regular Drawings Start January 1, Need help with VA Claims? Veteran Service Information Officer Philip Duncan is available to assist any veteran with VA claims. Page 3 Prize Distribution $8, in total cash prizes - 71 total drawings $50 x 1 per week (52) $250 x 1 per month (12) $500 x Patriotic Holidays (6) Contact Rick Butler if you would like one.

4 Auxiliary Members, South Platte Memorial Post 7356 Auxiliary This is a busy time of the year for the Auxiliary. The Annual St. Patrick s Day Dinner is Thursday, March 17 th from 4:30 to 7 pm. We will start preparing food on Wednesday, March 16 th. Help is needed to roll silverware, serve food and clean up. If you can assist and did not volunteer at the March meeting, please , text or call me to let me know. We will be decorating tote bags to give to female Veterans at the Kansas City VA hospital in early April. The exact date and location will be announced at the March meeting. If you crochet or make decorations using buttons, please make flowers which are about 2 to 3 inches in diameter. If you have old buttons that you are not using, donations for this project are needed. We will wrap socks for male Veterans at the Kansas City VA Hospital at 6:30 prior to the April meeting. The Post is having a Veterans Fair on Saturday, April 23, from 1 to 5 pm. The auxiliary will have a table there. Volunteers are needed to man the table. Patriotic Art Entries are due by March 31 st to Sharon Bugg. If you have a student entering from outside the Park Hill School District, please let Sharon and I know. The District 3 Auxiliary meeting will be May 1 st at the Veterans Home in Cameron MO. This is a good opportunity to visit the home. Officers for the year will be elected. Our auxiliary will elect officers at the April meeting and installation will be immediately after the meeting adjourns. Be sure to put the date on the calendar. Thanks for all that you have done and continue to do for our Veterans and Active Duty Military. Cheryl Hainkel, President Page 4

5 Eligibility for the VFW Auxiliary has expanded! There are now up to 12 people who may join our organization on the eligibility of 1 veteran! Tickets available after February 10, 2016 by calling the number above. Tickets can be mailed out, or picked up the day of the dinner. Feel free to cut out the below ad and give to anyone interested. Public welcome! Page 5

6 Auxiliary Information VFW Auxiliary Membership Information. The Auxiliary now accepts male and female members. Members must be age 16 or older and a US citizen. Membership is open to spouses, parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, siblings, widows or widowers of Veterans who served in a qualifying foreign war. Please contact Cheryl Hainkel if you have questions and to get a membership form. Child Care During Meetings! The Ladies Auxiliary wants all Veterans and Ladies Auxiliary Members with small children to know that we are offering child care during meetings. If you are interested in bringing your child, please the Ladies Auxiliary at southplattevfwla@gmail.com. Please give your name, the first name of your child, age of your child, any special needs and a contact phone number. Did you know the VFW Auxiliary offers free online training sessions for our members on a range of topics? There are currently 14 webinars for you, our members, to view including: A Virtual Tour of the 2016 Bylaws and Ritual Podium Edition Ask the National Secretary-Treasurer Local Auxiliary Treasurers and Trustees Training 990 Filings VFW Auxiliary Branding Center Engaging Your Auxiliary s Existing Members To access the webinars, Visit Click "Login" Login to the VFW Auxiliary Member Portal. On the left-hand side of the screen, select "Online Auxiliary Academy" A list of webinars will display. Simply click on the webinar you'd like to watch and it will open in a new window. Auxiliary Officers President: Cheryl Hainkel or Otterhalf@msn.com Senior-vice: Burnell Duncan or philduncan@kc.rr.com Junior Vice: Jodi Kersten Secretary: Linda Eckerle or lindae8110@aol.com Treasurer: Judith Green or hwkeye@kc.rr.com Conductress: Crystal Deshazer or crysdesh@yahoo.com Chaplain: Rosemary Nollette or kcrosecan@sbcglobal.nat Guard: Mary Lou Wilkinson Year Trustee: Betty Gianessi or betty@gianessi.name 2 Year Trustee: Sharon Bugg or sycbugg@kc.rr.com 1 Year Trustee: Ricki Butler or rickibutler17@gmail.com Patriotic Instructor Victoria Messick Or Torisphotos_85@hotmail.com Page 6

7 South Platte Memorial Post 7356 P.O. Box Tom Watson Parkway Parkville, MO We now have Follow VFWPOST7356 for updates! Wireless Internet is available at Post WPA sign-in: post7356vfw Calendar of Events March Asiatic Fleet Memorial 3 Star-Spangled Banner (1931) 13 Daylight Savings Time begins (Set clock ahead one hour) 14 The Gardens Social Hour 17 St. Patrick s Day Dinner 19 Iraq War Began (2003) 20 Palm Sunday / Spring Begins 24 VFW / Auxiliary Meeting Kosovo Campaign begin (1999) 25 Good Friday 27 Easter Sunday 31 Somalia Campaign End (1995) Monthly Every Monday Night Civil Air Patrol 7-9 p.m. April April Fools Day 6 Army Day 9 Nat l Former POW Recognition 11 Persian Gulf War Cease Fire 11 The Gardens Social Hour 18 Income Tax Day 22 Passover Begins 22 Earth Day 23 Veteran Post Admin Professionals Day 28 VFW / Auxiliary Meeting 29 Arbor Day Page 7