APRIL NEWSLETTER Page 1
Commander s Corner April. Opening Day. Election Season. This is going to be an amazing month! At our March meeting, our nominating committee, led by Rick Butler and Jeff Fox, presented a slate for our 2017/2018 leadership team. The slate reflects what we have in place right now. We tabled the issue for resolution at our April meeting. If you would like to maintain what we have today, you need to come to our April meeting and vote for the slate. If you would like the opportunity to serve, please ensure you come to our April meeting so your name can be placed in nomination and we can decide as a post. The more voices we have in this conversation the better our post will be, so please look at where we are, assess where you want us to be and participate. Spring moves pretty fast with schools approaching their end of year events, kids moving onto other endeavors and family reunions / other summer activities planning. Despite the excitement, we need to slow our pace a bit to take in our springtime lineup of activities. On April 6, the entire nation (and good chunks of France and England) will turn its eyes to the Liberty Memorial to acknowledge the sacrifices and victories of our World War One forebears. The men and women of the First World War transformed the United States from a regional power to a global power. All the events will be televised, and they will be worth a couple hours of your time. Our District Convention will take place on May 7 at the Veterans Home in Cameron; this is a great opportunity to gather with our comrades from across Northwestern Missouri and share time with older veterans who can t get around so well. There are links between the generations of warriors that need to be maintained, and this is a great opportunity. We will distribute Buddy Poppies again on Memorial Day; this is a great chance for our community to see us and for us to explain the role veterans play in our community. Please consider donating some time during this opportunity to interact with Kansas Citians. In June, we ll prepare for our 4 th of July parade. We will again partner with our scouting and CAP organizations to provide Parkville a multi-generation demonstration of patriotism and commitment to the next 241 years. Our committee that prepares for the parade will need help. Our quest to bring as members into our community remains constant. If each of us brings a new member into the fold in the next 60 days, we will be well on our way to maintaining the vibrancy of our post and getting more things done in our community. The late Spring / early Summer season is a period of hope and opportunity. May we all feel that optimism, and may our post take advantage of the opportunities we ve been given. Bob Bennett, Commander - 2016-2017 Post Officers - Commander Robert Bennett 816-298-0852 Judge Advocate Larry Maher 816-587-2213 Sr. Vice Commander Jeff Fox 816-584-2688 Chaplain John Bugg 816-741-8359 Jr. Vice Commander Tara K. Arteaga 816-726-7777 Surgeon Mike Vogt 816-522-5944 Quartermaster Robert Eckerle 816-741-8766 3-year Trustee Rick Butler 816-739-0693 Adjutant Tara K. Arteaga 816-726-7777 2-year Trustee John Hoffman 816-728-6760 Post PSO Philip Duncan 816-587-1117 1-year Trustee Jerry Felker 816-587-8026 Page 2
The Gardens Come on out and spend time with our veterans who can t join us at our post. This month, we re meeting on April 10th at 6 pm. The Gardens at Barry Road is located at 8300 NW Barry Rd, Kansas City, MO 64153 Check your email for a reminder! Spread the word! Breakfast has begun! Every Saturday from 8 a.m. to 10 a.m. we will serve our traditional breakfast at a new low price of $6 for adults and FREE for children 10 and under. Please advertise at your churches, local businesses, with friends. Let s pack the house! Flyer attached to the newsletter for easy distribution. If you would like to signup to help, please click HERE VFW Honor Guard Our Post is developing a Funeral Honor Guard. If you are interested, please reply to the Quartermaster at vfwpost7356@kc.rr.com, question will be answered to the best of our ability. Need help with VA Claims? Veteran Service Information Officer Philip Duncan is available to assist any veteran with VA claims. Order your VFW Uniform Cap today! To place your order today, go to http://www.vfwstore.org/category/vfw/uniformcapandnametags or call 1-800-821-2606.VFW Post Quartermaster Bob Eckerle also has some sizes available. See below. Currently in stock at the Post, are sizes : 7 = 4 each, 7 1/8 = 2 each, 7 3/8 = 1 each, 7 ½ = 1 each, 7 5/8 = 5 each, 7 ¾ = 3 each, and 7 7/8 = 3 each Page 3
Auxiliary Members, South Platte Memorial Post 7356 Auxiliary We are entering into the busy season of spring. Thanks to everyone who attended the St. Patrick s Day Dinner. A special thanks to those who helped with preparation, serving and cleanup. Sharon Bugg and Betty Gianessi prepared the food. VFW Post Members Calvin Campbell and Dave Ruse assisted with preparations of Thursday and Friday, These members either made cookies or helped serve and cleanup: Linda Eckerle, Judith Green, Lorie Green, Mary Helbock and son Hudson, Betty Gianessi s daughter and granddaughter. The food was delicious and everyone had a good time. The auxiliary elected delegates for the District 3 Convention and the Department of Missouri Convention. The District 3 delegates and alternates are: Mary Helbock, Sharon Bugg, Linda Eckerle, Anita Crowell, Judith Green, Rosemary Karp and I. All members are welcome at the meeting, which will be at Cameron Veterans Home on Sunday, May 8 th at 12 pm. The Department of Missouri Auxiliary Convention is June 8 through 11 th at the Ramada Oasis in Springfield MO. Judith Green and I are delegates. We are entitled to two more delegates if anyone else is interested in attending. Please let me know at the April meeting. No delegates were elected for National Convention as no one in the Auxiliary plans to attend. The April 27 th meeting is extremely important. We will be electing officers. All offices except for two trustees and secretary and Patriotic Instructor are filled by nomination and elections. The two trustee terms are not expired. Secretary and Patriotic Instructor are appointed by the incoming president. If you are interested in an office, please attend the meeting or submit a written statement with the office you seek and if you will accept in nominated and elected if you cannot be present. We are working with Pathfinder Elementary School on two projects. On Friday, May 5 th from 5 to 7 pm, we will be supporting the schools Sharpen the Saw Challenge at Barry Platte Park. We will be giving out bottled water to participants. If you want to help, please let me know. On Monday, May 8 th at 6 pm, we will dedicate the Buddy Bench the Auxiliary donated to the school as part of the PTA meeting. You are invited to attend. We are also working on decorating tote bags for female Veterans at the Kansas City VA Hospital to give for Mother s Day presents. We will wrap socks for male Veterans at 6 pm on Thursday, April 27 th. Let me know if you wish to donate socks. Join us for the wrapping party prior to the meeting. Thanks for everything that you do for Veterans, our enlisted military members and their families. Cheryl Hainkel, President 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! Page 4
Auxiliary Information Child Care During Meetings! The Auxiliary wants all Veterans and Auxiliary Members with small children to know that we are offering child care during meetings. If you are interested in bringing your child, please email the 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. Auxiliary Officers 2016-2017 President: Cheryl Hainkel 806-2796 or Otterhalf@msn.com Senior-vice: Randy Green 663-2236 or randygreen0628@yahoo.com Junior Vice: Jodi Kersten 913-638-7734 or kerstenjodi@att.net Secretary: Lorie Green 816-663-2194 or lgreen_59@yahoo.com Treasurer: Judith Green 741-9489 or hwkeye@kc.rr.com Conductress: Jessica Grogan 739-2781 or gothicfary84@yahoo.com Chaplain: Rosemary Karp 587-5313 or rosemrykarp@gmail.com Guard: Mary Lou Wilkinson 769-1157 Or mwilk6378@yahoo.com 3 Year Trustee: Linda Eckerle 741-8766 or lindae8110@aol.com 2 Year Trustee: Ricki Butler 256-0728 or rickibutler17@gmail.com 1 Year Trustee: Sharon Bugg 741-8359 or sycbugg@kc.rr.com Patriotic Instructor Victoria Messick 824-4127 Or Torisphotos_85@hotmail.com Historian Crystal Deshazer 520-3858 Or crysdesh@yahoo.com Page 5
South Platte Memorial Post 7356 P.O. Box 12121 10125 Tom Watson Parkway Parkville, MO 64152 816-746-8010 http://myvfw.org/mo/post7356/ We now have Follow VFWPOST7356 for updates! https://www.facebook.com/parkvillevfw7356 Wireless Internet is available at Post WPA sign-in: post7356vfw Calendar April 2017 1 April Fool s Day 5 Gold Star Wives Day 9 Palm Sunday 14 Good Friday 14 Air Force Reserve Birthday 16 Easter Sunday 22 Earth Day 23 Army Reserve Birthday 27 VFW Meeting Every Monday Night Civil Air Patrol 7-9 p.m. May 2017 5 Cinco de Mayo 14 Mother s Day 20 Armed Forces Day 25 VFW Meeting 29 Memorial Day **Note: We will be distributing the Buddy Poppy over Memorial Day weekend. Please sign up for a time slot to volunteer: HERE Page 6
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