Community Outreach – Page 26 – Ballard Eagleson Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 3063

Annual Spaghetti Fundraiser Volunteers’ Hard Work Pays Off

By Alyson M. Teeter

*A sampling of the raffle prizes included art, dinner gift certificates, and vacation houses. There was something for everyone as there were more than 60 raffle prizes.*

Many hours of work paid off for VFW Post 3063 volunteers during the VFW Post 3063 Annual Spaghetti Fundraiser and Raffle Sept. 8, 2018. The annual spaghetti fundraiser, which has been held at the post hall for a number of years, brought in $5797.77. The net proceeds will be deposited in the Post Relief Fund, which benefits a variety of causes, from local veterans in need — including those at the Seattle VA hospital — to the VFW’s National Home for Children.

The hall was jam packed with comrades,

The Seelig Family cooks and serves dinner at the fundraiser.

family members, and friends due in part to the Seelig family. Two-year Trustee Russ Seelig and his family performed a bulk of the work, from collecting raffle items to cooking the food. Their dedication to executing a phenomenal event was evident in the amount and quality of raffle items, the large turnout, and the taste of the food.

Many other members helped behind the scenes by collecting or donating

The post hall was full of members, family, and friends enjoying each other’s company while waiting for dinner to be served. Children were welcome at the event and entertained by the post’s toy collection.

raffle items and selling tickets. Robert Kettle narrated and kept the event running smoothly. The Post 3063 Color Guard performed a flawless posting of the colors. Jan Bryson provided front office support before, during, and after the event.

Thank you to all who attended and come again next year!

Post and Boy Scouts Team Up to Retire Flags

Comrade Dan Stokke, with assistance from Boy Scout Troop 80 out of Magnolia, retire flags using the post’s portable incineration device.

Comrade Dan Stokke, with assistance from Boy Scout Troop 80 out of Magnolia, conducted a flag retirement ceremony in the post parking lot July 21, 2018. They honored unserviceable American Flags by properly disposing of them in the post’s portable incineration device. If you or your neighbors have an unserviceable flag, bring it by the office during regular office hours and we will add it to the collection for the next retirement ceremony.

Comrades Dan Stokke (left), Gail Engler and Pete Krawitz (right) pose with Boy Scout Troop 80 during the flag retirement. Comrade Elizabeth Servey helps lead the troop and is pictured in the back row.

Post Commander Presents Award to AFROTC Cadet

Post 3063 Commander Pete Krawitz presented the VFW Award to University of Washington Air Force ROTC Detachment 910 Sophomore Cadet Ryan Lowery during the UW ROTC Joint Service Award Ceremony May 24, 2018. Cadet Lowery was recognized for his active engagement in AFROTC and his leadership traits. He’s the son of a retired U.S. Air Force Master Sergeant and hopes to become an intelligence officer once he receives his commission.

Post Commander Krawitz presents award to Cadet Lowery.

Post 3063 Adjutant Alyson Teeter (2002 Det 910 Alumnus) and Commander Pete Krawitz pose with Cadet Ryan Lowery.

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.