CONTENTS. Message from the Commander. Message from the TEXALPA President 2. Upcoming Events 3. Post 430 and The American Legion Riders 4

Transcription

1 Message from the Commander CONTENTS Message from the TEXALPA President 2 Upcoming Events 3 Post 430 and The American Legion Riders 4 Message from the Auxiliary President 5 American Legion and Target Join Forces for Troops 6 Postal Service Announces Holiday Guidelines 7 Military Voting Reform: Mission Accomplished 8 Americanism Youth Conference Essay 9 Hello again. October started off with my homecoming and it was a well attended event. We had Lois Kolkhorst, Texas House of Representative who is a staunch supporter of the American Legion. She gave a passionate address and was well received by the attendees. We had the National Honor Guard Champions, Harrisburg Post 472, who posted the colors which was followed by a video presentation by Dwayne Englehardt by LC Greenwood about standing up next to our fellow citizens to defend the USA. After dinner we enjoyed a close order drill performance by the Honor Guard. It was a great time and I thank all who had a part in it and especially those in attendance. Then it was off to the Fall Meetings in Indianapolis. We learned a lot about the coming changes in the website. Target date is November 11th and we will have a new addition to the site: mylegion.org. This is a more interactive user friendly version of the items requested by the general membership, eg ability to get to your own legion record and even make changes to your own records to facilitate accuracy in the system. Other features will be obvious and new ones are coming along each week. Try it out and I am confident you will agree. National is calling for all Departments to do their share in restoring the funds in the National Emergency Fund this year as much has had to be distributed in the present economic environment. So if any posts in the Department (especially those that conduct bingo, as with the new rules you will probably have to give more to charity), please consider this as one of your new contributions. Veterans priority groups are now opened once again at the VA. So I encourage all veterans who have not signed up to go to your local VA Hospital and sign up immediately. We do not know what the future will bring and what will happen to health care. But we do know that the Obama Administration has promised to keep the VA System fenced off from any changes the government might make in health care. This administration has released record breaking funds to the veterans. It is time we all take advantage of that. If you need any help in how to accomplish this please see your service officers for assistance. (continued p. 2)

2 The Legion Times Vo l u m e 91, Is s u e 4 November 2009 Executive Director William West Editor F.G. Adams Send all correspondence and submissions to: The Legion Times PO Box Austin, TX T: / F: times@txlegion.org The Legion Times assumes no responsibility for material submitted and reserves the right to edit any submissions. Editorial deadline is the 20th of every month for inclusion in the following month s issue. Subscription is included in the annual American Legion, Department of Texas dues. Contact the American Legion, Department of Texas for extra copies, or copies for non-legionnaires. The Legion Times is the official publication of the American Legion Department of Texas Member of: American Legion Press Association Texas American Legion Press Assoc. Texas Press Association. The Legion Times is published online 12 times a year by the American Legion, Department of Texas I have attended several District Conventions and am finding them well attended as compared to last couple of years. It is even more imperative that we have good instruction at these conventions. Right now it is the major means of communication to the local posts. If you feel you are not getting the necessary instruction for your post, please contact me personally. We need to close the gap between Department and Local Posts. The Hubmaster Network we are building in the Department will facilitate this directive. I am looking for each post commander to appoint an individual that is internet savy and regularly attends the local general meetings to be named Post Hubmaster. It sole duty is to gather the s sent from Department through the District Hubmasters and present them formally at the post general meeting. If there are any questions on this procedure you can attend the January Winter Conference at the Omni Hotel, Austin, Tx on Saturday Jan 23rd, at 2pm; or you can check with your District Commanders. This network will make it possible to communicate directly between post members and the Department. Hopefully, you will see some of this training at the Spring Conventions of the Districts as well. Finally, we are forming a Long Range Planning Committee (LRPC) to develop the future plans of the Department of Texas to lead us into the future and to cope with the many IT changes throughout the world. If you have any suggestions just me at paloduro33@hotmail.com or call me or mail to PO Box 445, Wallis, TX Hope to be hearing from you. Till next time: Your Commander and Servant Don Daft Message from the President of the Texas American Legion Press Association (TEXALPA) Greetings Legionnaires, Auxiliary, Sons, and Riders: Relationships, like children, mature and deepen with time. TEXALPA shares a relationship with The American Legion family and a commitment to get information to the members and to the community about our programs. Through newsletters and web pages, TEXALPA allows posts to tell their story about who we are and what The American Legion Family is doing. Every District and every Post should have at least one person as a member of TEXALPA. Every month across our great state, the Legion Family has exciting events intended to benefit veterans and their families, enhance The American Legion s public profile, raise funds, and emphasize the continuing worth of military service as the highest form of public service. These exciting events should be publicized in newsletters, web pages, and through articles in local newspapers, radio, and television. At the Mid Winter Convention, TEXALPA will be hosting a breakfast on Sunday morning, January 24, 2010, at Plan on joining us, we could use your support. Ed Magers will be selling tickets at the convention. Dues are only $20.00, for TEXALPA/NALPA, which will include a pin. Eldon Erickson President TEXALPA PO Box 160 Whitharral TX pamibra@windstream.net 2

3 DEPARTMENT OFFICERS Don Daft, Department Commander Bill Hueske Department Vice Commander Charles Edwards, Chaplain Kenneth Mueller, Treasurer Daniel Corbin, Judge Advocate Cyndi Miller, Historian Dale Anspach, Sergeant-at-Arms Jerry Tatman, Assistant Sergeant-at-Arms Conrad Roberson, NEC Jim Prendergast, Alt NEC James McNair, IPDC William West, Adjutant Michael Simon, Director of Internal Affairs Edward Reyes, Department Service Officer (Houston) Michael Lacy, Department Service Officer (Houston) Reba Hollingsworth, Department Service Officer (Waco) Don Bridschge, Department Service Officer (Waco) DIVISION COMMANDERS Larry Mims, 1st Division Commander Lynn Sparks, 2nd Division Commander Robert Squyres, 3rd Division Commander Barry Schoenhals, 4th Division Commander DISTRICT COMMANDERS Bobby Baker, 1st District Commander Milton Chatham, 2nd District Commander Linda Reed, 3rd District Commander Wayne Thomas, 4th District Commander Bernard Aderholt, 5th District Commander Bobby Ray, 6th District Commander Sheila Schulte, 7th District Commander Robert Fleming, 8th District Commander Tom Harlan, 9th District Commander Walter Ivie, 10th District Commander Don Damron, 11th District Commander Terrance Bigley, 12th District Commander Larry Vess, 13th District Commander Pablo Garza, Jr, 14th District Commander George Solis, 15th District Commander Ruben Banks, Sr, 16th District Commander Dan Dutton, 17th District Commander Roosevelt Sullivan, 18th District Commander Patricia Erickson, 19th District Commander Joe Duarte, 20th District Commander W.L. Fleming, 21st District Commander Terry Messinger, 22nd District Commander Robert Hester, 23rd District Commander UPCOMING EVENTS November 10th Marine Corps Birthday November 11th Veterans Day November 11th #1 Gold Pin Cutoff Date (55%) November 11th Post 100% Award November 15th Dept Employer Awards Deadline November 18th National 65% Target Date November 26th Thanksgiving Day November 27th Department Headquarters Closed November 27th Department 75% Target Date 3

4 Post 430 and The American Legion Riders American Legion Post 430 and The American Legion Riders in Odessa presented a check for $ to the West Texas (Big Spring) VA Health Care System Van Fund in September Funds were generated from the Black Gold Biker Rally. Receiving the check was Daniel Marsh, Director of WT VA HCS. Presented by Ken Dorsett, Legion Rider, Tom Bowe, Post Commander, Ken Hodges, Riders Director, Buck Jones, Legion Rider and John Curry, VAVS. 4

5 Message from the Auxiliary President Greetings from the American Legion Auxiliary, October has been a busy month. We just finished National Veterans Creative Arts Festival in San Antonio. The Auxiliary was in charge of the hospitality room. With the donations Texas received for the hospitality room the Veterans who participated in the NVCAF indicated it was one of the best hospitality rooms they have attended. Thank you to all the Auxiliary, Legionnaires and Sons of the American Legion, volunteers who chose to spend time in the hospitality room interacting with the participants and keeping the refreshment tables replenished at all times. We had approximately 60 volunteers who helped in the hospitality room during the 8 days. I attended President and Secretary Conference October 10-14, 2009 in Indianapolis, IN. We had a great time and learned a lot. National doesn t leave a lot of time for the Department President to visit sites around town. I must say it was all work, but very enjoyable. The conference was informative and National is listening to what the Departments are saying. National President Rita Navarrete is promoting The American Legion Auxiliary Celebrating 90 Years of Service Not Self. The official kickoff date is: November 10, The November issue of the Auxiliary magazine will feature an article that announces the official celebration information and gives suggestions for celebration activities for units and departments. More information will be in the bulletin. This past year the American Legion Auxiliary posted outstanding statistics in our community. This will be posted on the Auxiliary website. On October 15, 2009, we started our official Veterans Affairs Medical Centers hospital tours. We have visited and toured the North Texas Veterans Health Care System (Dallas VA), Sam Rayburn Memorial VA Medical Center, (Bonham) and VA Health Care Center in El Paso. We also toured the Fisher Houses in Dallas and El Paso. On each of the visits the delegation was able to speak with the Director of the VA. We were updated on the expansion, what each of the hospitals is working on in their facility and what each facility hopes to accomplish this year. A special thanks to each of the ALA Representatives and Deputies for making these tours a success. The Auxiliary would love for you to attend the hospital tours. The tours are listed on the Auxiliary website. We will be at Michael E. DeBakey VA Hospital in Houston on November 6, we look forward to seeing you on the tour. Barbara Kundert s, Department President Homecoming will take place on November 14, 2009, at American Legion Post 426, address: 8500 FM 3136, Alvarado, TX The cost is $ We will be serving BBQ, Cole Slaw, Potato Salad, Dessert, and Tea/Coffee. For more information contact: tld5355@yahoo.com. I look forward to the Veterans Day ceremonies across Texas and I wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday. Veterans and Volunteers, Barbara Kundert Department President 5

6 The American Legion and Target Join Forces to Raise More than $100,000 to Help Troops Attacked in Afghanistan INDIANAPOLIS (Oct. 21, 2009) In less than a week, an American Legion blog site raised more than $50,000, which Target matched with an additional $50,000 contribution, to help U.S. soldiers who were forced to destroy their camp and all of their possessions during a deadly Oct. 3 enemy attack in Afghanistan. In addition, Connecticut-based Computer Sciences Corporation has donated 56 laptop computers to the relief effort to replace those that were destroyed. The Combat Outpost Keating Relief Fund sprang to life on The American Legion s Burn Pit blog site after one of the 56 surviving troops wrote in an that he believed no one at home had any idea what they were doing there, and that no one cared. The American Legion, Target and all who contributed to the COP Keating Relief Fund have shown these brave soldiers that we do indeed care, American Legion National Commander Clarence Hill said. The relief fund contributions will help replace such things as digital cameras, video games, DVDs, books, memory cards, music players, and other personal items that give soldiers a break from the intensity of the war. The early-october attack by Taliban-allied militants in the rugged Nuristan province of Afghanistan claimed the lives of eight American soldiers from Bravo Troop 3-61 Cavalry out of Fort Carson, Colo. The troops were forced to call in an artillery strike on their own position to destroy the camp before it was overrun. On Saturday, Oct. 24, members of The American Legion will go to a Target store near Fort Carson and purchase many of the items that will be shipped later in the month to Afghanistan. Also participating in the packing party at American Legion Post 209 in Colorado Springs will be members of Fort Carson s Family Readiness Group. Similar shopping and packing events are planned for Minneapolis on Oct. 27 and Fairfax, Va., on Oct. 29. Target Volunteers will help assemble the packages in Fairfax. Within a month of losing everything other than the clothes on their backs, these soldiers will have replacement items from home and a realization that they are not forgotten at war, said Hill, who leads the nation s largest veterans service organization. It is our duty as a nation to stand by those who go in harm s way on our nation s behalf. Visitors of the Burn Pit, Target and Legionnaires across the country understand the importance of that duty. For years, Target has donated funds and volunteer hours to local and national veterans and military organizations, said Laysha Ward, president, community relations, Target. It is our hope that our contribution, along with other generous donors gifts, will show our thanks to the soldiers of COP Keating who are sacrificing so much for our country. About The American Legion With a current membership of 2.5-million wartime veterans, The American Legion is the nation s largest veterans organization. It was founded in 1919 on the four pillars of a strong national security, veterans affairs, Americanism, and youth programs. Legionnaires work for the betterment of their communities through more than 14,000 posts across the nation. About Target Minneapolis-based Target Corporation (NYSE:TGT) serves guests at 1,743 stores in 49 states nationwide and at Target.com. Target is committed to providing a fun and convenient shopping experience with access to unique and highly differentiated products at affordable prices. Since 1946, the corporation has given 5 percent of its income through community grants and programs like Take Charge of Education. Today, that giving equals more than $3 million a week. 6

7 Postal Service Announces Holiday Mailing Guidelines By Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Jung Special to American Forces Press Service BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Afghanistan, Oct. 28, 2009 U.S. Postal Service officials have announced recommended mailing dates for delivery by Christmas to U.S. servicemembers serving in Afghanistan and other overseas locations. First-class and priority mail for servicemembers stationed in Afghanistan should be sent by Dec. 4 for arrival by Christmas. The deadline for parcel airlift mail is Dec. 1, and space-available mail bound for Afghanistan should be sent by Nov. 21. Officials recommend that parcel post mail to all military overseas locations should be sent by Nov. 13. A chart with recommended mailing deadlines for all types of mail to various APO and FPO addresses is available at the Postal Service s Web site at Express mail cannot be used to mail packages to Afghanistan; however priority mail is available. Priority mail packaging products, including priority mail flat-rate boxes, can be obtained free at any post office, or online at The priority mail large flat-rate box can be used to mail to any overseas military address, no matter the weight of the box, for $ The Postal Service offers free military care kits, designed for military families sending packages overseas. To order by phone, call and ask for the military care kit. Each kit includes two America Supports You large priority mail flat-rate boxes, four medium-sized priority mail flat-rate boxes, six priority mail labels, a roll of priority mail tape and six customs forms with envelopes. All packages and mail must be addressed to the individual servicemember by name, without rank, in accordance with Department of Defense regulations, said Air Force Master Sgt. Deb LaGrandQuintana, the 455th Expeditionary Communications Squadron official mail manager here. Military overseas units are assigned an APO or FPO ZIP code, and in many cases, that ZIP code travels with the unit wherever it goes, LaGrandQuintana added. The Postal Service places APO and FPO mail to overseas military servicemembers on special transportation destined to be delivered as soon as possible. Mail sent APO and FPO addresses may require customs forms. All mail addressed to military post offices overseas is subject to certain conditions or restrictions regarding content, preparation and handling. For general guidelines on sending mail to servicemembers overseas, visit Postal Service officials recommend taking the following measures when sending packages: -- If you use a regular box, use one strong enough to protect the contents with no writing on the outside. -- Cushion contents with newspaper, bubble wrap, or Styrofoam. Pack tightly to avoid shifting. -- Package food items like cookies, fudge, candies, etc. securely in leak-proof containers. -- Use pressure-sensitive or nylon-reinforced packing tape. -- Do not use wrapping paper, string, masking tape, or cellophane tape outside the package. -- Print your return address and the servicemember s complete name, without rank, followed by unit and APO or FPO delivery address on one side only of the package. -- Place a return address label inside the package. -- Stuff fragile items with newspaper or packing material to avoid damage. -- Remove batteries from toys and appliances. Wrap and place them next to the items inside. -- Purchase insurance and delivery confirmation service for reassurance of package delivery. (Air Force Tech. Sgt. John Jung serves in the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing public affairs office.) 7

8 Military voting reforms inspire cry of mission accomplished from leader of The American Legion WASHINGTON (Oct. 30, 2009) Rounding out the month of October with the enactment of legislation strengthening the political franchise of active duty military personnel has made the leader of The American Legion feeling good. It s with a sense of great satisfaction, said Clarence E. Hill, national commander of the nation s largest veterans service organization, that The American Legion can celebrate victory in our long-fought battle to award the Department of Veterans Affairs advance appropriations and, with the President s signing this week of the Fiscal Year 2010 Defense Appropriations Act, applaud a 3-point-4 percent military pay raise and the strengthening of our Army by 30-thousand troops. But, something else was contained in the Defense Appropriations Act that may, in the long run, have the greatest significance of all, not just to our military, but to our nation as a whole, said Hill. And that is the military voting reform measure contained in the legislation. As Texas Senator John Cornyn said in his original and excellent bill which got folded into the Defense Appropriations Act the ability of the members of the Armed Forces to vote while serving overseas has been hampered by numerous factors, including inadequate processes for ensuring their timely receipt of absentee ballots, delivery methods that are typically slow and antiquated, and a myriad of absentee voting procedures that are often confusing and vary among the several States. The new military voting reforms correct those discrepancies and also provide for expert guidance through the military s absentee voting process, Hill said. What this all means is that our citizens most deserving of a voice in the affairs of our nation and the choice of our leaders can now be heard in full strength. This is something The American Legion has long championed and so I say, with great pride on behalf of our two-and-a-half million Legion members, mission accomplished! 8

9 The deadline for the Freedoms Foundation at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, is rapidly approaching. The Americanism Youth Conference essay must be submitted to the Unit President, Post or Squadron Commander by December 1st, 2009 and based on the theme: Civic Education...Why it s Important to Me. There is no limit to the number of essays that can be submitted to Department and judging will be done on the Department level. The evaluation will be on message and content and all applications will be reviewed for extra-curricular activities to include community service. Essays should be submitted by December 15th, This essay is due to National by January 8th, The student chosen as representative from their state will be notified in mid-january The program is open to all students in grades 10, 11 and 12. The date for the Americanism Youth Conference is March Application forms can be found on the National ALA website at These students will also be challenged to express their views and perspectives about their constitutional rights and responsibilities. What an opportunity to visit this historic place, so much history happened in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Freedoms Foundation was founded in It is located 25 miles from Philadelphia and has an 85-acre campus. Freedoms Foundation was established after World War II by three prominent business leaders - Ken Wells, Don Belding and E.F. Hutton; to honor patriotism and good citizenship. Former President Dwight D. Eisenhower served as Chairman from the Foundation s founding in 1949 until his death in In the winter of George Washington was Commander in-chief of the Continental Army at Valley Forge, Pennsylvania. Camp was set up 25 miles from the City; it was a good choice because it was on a high plateau. One side was protected by the river and the other two sides had shallow creeks which would cause problems for any cavalry and artillery. These attackers would have to charge up hill. The military had a small amount of military stores, but the British learned about these stores and raided the Village, seizing the goods and burning down the houses. In the diaries of these troops was written stories of the bitter snow and cold and having to eat fire cakes and cold water. A fire cake was made of flour and water and then cooked on a griddle. And to top it all off, the morning after Christmas the men awoke to four more inches of snow on the ground. So the conditions at Valley Forge had extreme weather conditions and not much food to eat. Some of the people who served at Valley Forge were Benedict Arnold, Aaron Burr, James Monroe and Martha Washington, just to name a few. These American soldiers sacrificed and suffered, but this is the place that a new professional and confident army soldier was born. They had three months of shortages and hardships and three months of abundance. With the abundance came changes in the morale and fighting capabilities of the army soldiers (known as the Continental Army). The training regime the soldiers went thru transformed the ragged amateur troops into confident 18th century military troops and capable of fighting the Red-Coats in an open field battle. Finally the Red-Coats and the Continental Army clashed on June 28, 1778, at the Monmouth Courthouse. The battle at Monmouth was inconclusive, but it was the British who retreated this time. And it was clear to everyone that those ragged Continentals -- who had suffered so much at Valley Forge -- were now a fair match for the British. (Article by Ron Avery for Philadelphia Daily News) I encourage every Post to help a young man or young lady to enter this essay contest, for a chance at this amazing opportunity. Remember, by December 15, National Americanism Committee member, Mickie Prendergast Americanism Youth Conference Essay 9

10 The Legion Times PO Box Austin, TX T: F: Do you have an article or announcement for The Legion Times? If so, please review the submission guidelines available at All submissions must be received by the 20th of every month to appear in the following issue. GET UPDATED! More than 165,000 subscribers now receive the American Legion s WEEKLY E-NEWSLETTER! /FXT t 'FBUVSFT t *OUFSWJFXT t 1IPUP (BMMFSJFT &YDMVTJWF 7JEFPT t *OUFSBDUJWF 'FBUVSFT t 3FVOJPOT YOU RE JUST A CLICK AWAY! (P UP XXX MFHJPO PSH BOE DMJDL PO i(fu 6QEBUFE w