Category: Commentary

Auxiliary Corner: What’s Membership?

By Donna Limric

 

The auxiliary supports the veterans and our communities so that they may be well. Most civic organizations have an auxiliary of some kind and the VFW is no exception. We raise funds, volunteer our time, and collect goods for organizations that serve our vets, military families and our community at large. For example, we raise money for National Home which is an organization that provides temporary housing for families and children in need. In addition, we volunteer at the VA hospital and send care packages to military posts.

 

The auxiliary promotes and celebrates patriotism through the proper care and retirement of American flags. On Flag Day and Veterans Day we post flags at grave sites of the heroes who have passed on. We offer scholarships to our youth for art, writing and community service that demonstrates what patriotism means. When our membership grows we can do so much more, and more is needed.

 

The VFW Ballard Auxiliary needs members. If you have a spouse, late spouse, sibling, parent, grandparent, or child who fought in a battle in a foreign war in the American Armed Forces, you qualify to join the VFW Auxiliary. It costs $50.00 to join but our auxiliary can sponsor you if you are unable to pay the dues. The Auxiliary provides advocacy to our lawmakers on behalf of our veterans and our armed forces to protect and improve benefits for our veterans, armed forces and their families. Members in our ranks means more people who have an interest in veterans and military issues. Finally, more members in our auxiliary means that we have more people to provide all the services our community and veterans need.

 

So, what’s in it for you?  Being in the auxiliary is fun. You get to meet wonderful people who are dedicated to various projects. It is social. Last May I was involved in a group that hosted bingo for VA Hospital patients. We brought sandwiches, snacks, cake and ice cream. The patients got the chance to win vouchers for the hospital canteen. We had a blast! Last Memorial Day the post and auxiliary participated in a poppy drive in front of the QFC. People coming out of the store shared their stories of being a vet, or of the vets in their family. One lady from Britain shared her memories of doing poppy drives with her parents since she was a little girl. The auxiliary also has a scholarship program for members who face cancer that pays for treatment expenses. Your participation in the auxiliary would look great on a resume!

 

So, if you want to belong to a fun group of people who are dedicated to making a difference please consider joining the VFW Auxiliary. We would love to have you.

From the Commander (July 2018)

By Pete Krawitz

 

First, I’d like to thank you all for voting to have me stay on as the post commander for another year. I’m very humbled by the privilege to serve you and the community in this capacity. The rest of the leadership team and I look forward to continuing to work with you to build off the momentum that we’ve been building over the years.

 

I’d like to take a minute to reflect and celebrate some of our successes in the 2017/2018 term. It’s been a busy 12 months for Ballard Eagleson, but our hard work has paid off. This was evident at the Department of Washington convention when were informed that we achieved 111% of our membership goal, which now makes 3063 the largest post in the District. We also achieved the coveted “All State” status for the second year in a row. We even earned 1st place in the Department’s newsletter competition. We have a long list of successes this year and needless to say, I’m very proud to be a part of this post. Many thanks to all of you who helped get us here.

 

As our post community continues to grow, so will the challenges. Ballard, like the rest of the Seattle area, is changing rapidly. If we want to continue to be relevant in the community and serve veterans, we need to adapt and change with the city.  “Change or Die” was the message that the VFW national rep delivered to us at the Department Convention. Thankfully, Post 3063 is in much better shape than some other posts around Washington State, but we still have a lot of work to do if we want to ensure our relevancy and long-term existence in Seattle. Over the next month, I’ll be working with the post leadership team to draft up our strategy, goals, and initiatives for the 2018/2019 term. We will need your help to make this next term just as successful as the last. I look forward to working with you all for another year!

Quartermaster’s Update (July 2018)

By Harold Rodenberger

 

Having recently returned from taxing my body physically while climbing in the Himalayas, it’s back to taxing my brain while serving as your post quartermaster.

 

Those of you who followed along on my blog are aware of the rigors entailed in climbing to Everest base camp. If you didn’t follow my reports, I can assure you that it was one of the biggest challenges I’ve ever faced.

 

While the trekking pretty much was a solitary quest, the tasks and burdens of quartermaster are shared by many of you. Our Commander and Adjutant have picked up parts of the load, many volunteers have stepped up to share the day-to-day jobs that need to be done to keep our post operating. All of you, whether sharing a word of encouragement, signing up a new member or renewing your own membership early, have helped keep our post alive and growing.

 

At the recent Washington State VFW Convention in Bremerton, Commander Pete and myself were awarded white hats as All State Commander and Quartermaster. These honors reflect well on us, but, to continue the trekking comparison, they reflect the great job you, as members and volunteers, have done to keep the heart of this post throbbing and its blood pumping.

 

This month marks the beginning of the new VFW year. Again, we are starting from ground zero to help veterans and their families in our post, in our community and wherever we find them.

 

As veterans of foreign wars ourselves, we are uniquely positioned to reach out to our fellow veterans of all generations. Having been there we alone can understand their problems and their achievements.

 

To get this new year of to a good start, please keep an eye out for new recruits to our post. Invite them to join with our veterans in comradeship and a community effort to help themselves and others in an ever-widening circle of influence.

 

Finally, as the year progresses, please help us get the credit we are due for helping in our community by reporting any of the good things you do. We are making the feeder forms easier to send in and, if each us could find the time to complete the report we will help our post, state and national organization get the credit we deserve as Veterans Helping Veterans.

Auxiliary President Recognizes District, State Officers

By Donna Limric

 

The members of the Post 3063 Auxiliary are working hard to rebuild our organization.  Our goal is to become strong and active. We now have a business license for the auxiliary, so we are recognized by the state! Thank you to our treasurer Liz Guncay for all your hard work!

 

I would like to recognize the help from auxiliary members outside our post. First a huge thank you to District 2 Auxiliary President Lois Mezek. Louis has been to every meeting, and there by phone and e-mail with whatever we need. She has been guiding us every step of the way. The following individuals have also been of great help: State Jr. Vice President Kathi Naff, State Conductress Barbara Moore, and State President Laurie Lukas.  Finally, the post itself has been enthusiastically encouraging us while affording us the space to get back on our feet.

 

Our auxiliary’s first event will be a book sale on May 5–6. The hours will be announced very soon.  We will have fliers and post the hours on our Facebook page. This will be the same weekend as the grand opening weekend of the Nordic Museum.  Please come down and explore what we have to offer.  The proceeds from the book sale will benefit the Heroes in the Ballpark fund.

 

Quartermaster’s Update (April 2018)

By Harold Rodenberger

 

Every year we observe milestones along the way to a new VFW year. Last month we had first nominations for office. During the business meeting later this week we will elect officers for the coming year. During the May meeting, those officers will be installed. After the new State Commander is installed near the end of our annual state convention, our new officers will take on their new roles and the new VFW year will begin.

 

As the days grow longer and the weather warms, we will be scheduling flag retirement ceremonies, shredder truck visits and cleanup days around our post. Memorial Day is coming and with it we will have our usual Buddy Poppy distribution teams working around our neighborhood. Every year we participate in the Memorial Day celebrations at local cemeteries. Please let one of our officers or myself know if you would like to join in any of these events.

 

All year, but especially as our year draws down, we are reminded that new members are critical to the life of our post. Every year we lose some who pass on to their reward, those who move to different parts of the country and others who simply move on to other pursuits and let their memberships lapse. For our post to replace those losses and grow we need to replace the losses and generate a few extra for good measure.

 

Please see if you can find a new member among your friends and acquaintances. Sometimes all it takes is to ask a potential new member to join. The critical part is asking. If they aren’t asked most people will never join.

 

They call it “March Madness” but the participating teams can’t be mad. They must be talented and skillful at what they do but, at this level, they also must be well disciplined team players who share a goal and work hard to achieve that goal. Every year, it seems that we hear about less talented teams winning because they play better as a TEAM.

 

Just like a basketball team, a successful VFW Post survives on teamwork. It takes many people doing their part for any post to thrive. Our post is blessed with many hard working volunteers who fill the officer positions and others who serve on committees, help with the Honor/Color Guard, help with hall setup and cleanup and otherwise play key roles on our team.

 

Here’s a big Thank You to those who help make the train run and the post grow.