June 2009 NEWSLETTER
PLACE: THE SIZZLER, 1401 N. HARBOR BLVD.
Installation of Officers for 2009-2010.
June Program:
Carol Pierson is a nurse at
St. Jude Hospital. She will
describe the signs of stroke which if recognized early can save your life, the
life of a loved one and reduce the severity of the stroke.
This may be one of the most
valuable information sessions you may ever attend.
It may save your life or
the life of someone you care about.
Memorial Day Thanks:
We just concluded an outstanding Memorial Day ceremony.
Over 1,500 people attended and our speaker, BG Eric Crabtree delivered a
great address. Thanks to all the
Legionnaires and family members that helped with chart updates, preplanning,
Friday cross pre-positioning, Saturday flag and cross placement, Monday
ceremony, Tuesday cleanup and Wednesday flag ironing.
Huge thanks to Warren and Laverne
Holmes who were present for everything.
Also thanks to Mike Albertson and
the Fullerton JROTC cadets, Bruce and Sandy Anderson, Al Blake, Don Bankhead,
Dick Blosser, Mike Box, Buck Catlin, Hal and Marcia Dixon, Don Dutton, Jeff,
Marilyn and Katie Harris, Jim Howland, Mike and Pat Hyland, Miles Kaspar, John
Mathews, Kendall Neisess, Pansy Paul, Helen Orth, Neil Reich, Myron Roberts,
Larry Sears, Allen Stubblefield and the Troy JROTC cadets, Rich Wakefield, Alan
Wiles and Andrew Wiles. If I
missed someone, I apologize. Again,
thank you all. Please come again
next year.
Ed Paul
Chaplain’s Message to the Members:
“And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, shall guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7, NAS translation)
If we can be of service to you, please call.
Jim Howland and Hal Dixon
Commander’s Corner:
Thank you again for your confidence in me as the commander of the Post.
I am so grateful for the other officers continuing on for another year.
The Post Officers (see left
side of this letter.) do a great job for the Post and the community.
A few changed positions, but we’re basically the same crew.
The three Youth Environmental Leadership Conference students came back
from the Sacramento area two weeks ago.
They all had a great time.
We will see them in September when the Boys and Girls State candidates come to
see us. The Fullerton Memorial Day
activities were really quite wonderful.
The people of Fullerton did a great job volunteering on our two big days
of placing the flags and crosses/stars and then we had so many people helping on
Tuesday that we were done by 9am.
What a great experience it all was!
I want to add a special thanks and recognition to
Ed and Pansy Paul, who have worked
tirelessly to organize a new cemetery map system.
It was an awesome task, which has now been tested.
With a few corrections, it will be spectacular.
Thanks to all who helped make this happen as well.
All but one of the ROTC/ JROTC awards ceremonies have happened.
We gave the kids a certificate, ribbon, medal, and gift card.
The school instructors really did an exceptional job this year building
their units, with La Habra, Fullerton, and Troy getting special regional and
national honors. (Mike
Albertson, our Assistant Adjutant, is the senior instructor at FUHS) Great
Job Mike!
Walt and Jackie Little and
Jeff helped me out this year and we
had a great time with the kids. It
is amazing to see how much has happened over the year.
Kendall Neisess will be
attending and presenting the Senior Awards again this year.
Thank you
Kendall.
The Boys and Girls State sessions are almost here and the kids are
ready to go. George Miller, Jeff,
and I worked extra hard this year getting everyone ready.
I also was the Buena Park Aux. Girls State chairman for the paperwork.
It was so much easier to process than it has been the last few years.
Thank you George and Jeff.
Thank you again to the
Commander’s Club for making it possible to do so much for the community and
the young people of Fullerton. It
is very special to have this connection with the kids of Fullerton.
This month we transferred Jacob (Terry)
Speidel to Post Everlasting.
The 2009 membership drive will conclude this
month and the 2010 year will begin 1 July.
If you have not paid your dues, you need to send it in ASAP.
If you pay for 2010 without paying for 2009, your Continuous Years will
start at one (1)
year again.
Attention:
Chapter 61 rules are being
modified. If you are a
military retiree
and a disabled veteran, please be
on the lookout for changes coming your way.
The proposal, called Omnibus,
if approved, will make all retirees eligible for Concurrent Retirement and
Disability Pay (CRDP) over a five-year period starting in January 2010.
It will come in two phases. Stand
by.
Attention:
The VA has set up a new web page for
college counselors and veterans who wish to learn more about the challenges
adjusting to life after leaving the military.
It is one of several Web-based tools the VA has developed. For more
information type in: www.mentalhealth.va.gov/College
If you are eligible for the
new GI Bill, you can now sign up on line.
Just go to the VA web page.
For those with internet
access at home or at the city library, all of our newsletters, and meeting and
event pictures are available for viewing at our web page.
(Fullertonpost142.com)
Thanks go to Richard Wakefield
and Mike Box for keeping our web
page updated with great stuff.
Upcoming Events:
The Post meetings are always on the second Tuesday of the month.
The next few monthly meetings are:
July 14, August 11 and September 8.
Please mark your calendars.
Please jot this number down in case someone you
know needs it. 800-342-9647 or
www.militaryonesource.com.
It is the number that all active duty, Guard and Reserve and their
families can call 24/7 for help of all kinds.
Their slogan is “You name it.
We can help.”
To request your DD-214, go
to the National Archives and Records Administration at
http://www.archives.gov/veterans/evetrecs/.
Follow the instructions. You
can also get assistance from the Veteran Service Office.
If you are not sure what you or your family is entitled to, please call
the Veterans Service Office
to talk to a claims officer. (714)
567-7450 If you reside outside of
Hospital/Rehabilitation Program.
Please continue to bring things to the meetings or call
Mike and Pat Hyland (996-8743) to
coordinate a home pick up. For more
information about this unique project sponsored by Cloudbreak Development, UC &
United States Veterans Initiative, Inc. (a 501(c)(3) organization), call (562)
499-6717 or visit their web site at www.usvetsinc.org.
Important Dates:
June 14, Flag Day (Fly Your
Flag)/Happy Birthday Army!; June 21, Father’s Day/Summer.
Memory Lane Dates:
June 3,
Battle of Cold Harbor ends (1864), Battle of Midway Began (1942);
June 4,
Siege of
Petersburg begins (1864), British Army Completes Dunkirk Evacuation (1940),
Battle of Midway also listed on this day (1942), Allied Forces capture Rome
(1944);
June 6,
D-Day: Allied
Invasion of Europe/”Operation Overlord” (1944), Operation Counter Began (1952);
June 8,
USS Liberty Attacked (1967);
June 10,
Italy Declares War
on France and UK (1940), Army Nurses Landed at Normandy (1944), Battle for the
Punchbowl Began (1951), Siege of Outpost Harry Began (1953), Kosovo Air Campaign
ends (1999);
June 11,
First Woman Promoted
to General/Flag Officer Rank (1970), Kosovo Defense Campaign begins (1999);
June 12,
President Truman Signed Women’s Armed Forces Services Integration Act (1948);
June 14,
US Army Founded (1775), Continental Army Established (1775), US Army Infantry
Branch birthday (1775), Flag Day (Commemorates the Adoption of the US Flag in
1777; officially designated as Flag Day in 1949), Germans Enter Paris (1940);
June 15,
George Washington appointed Commanding General of Continental Army (1775),
Battle of Saipan/Allies Land on Saipan (1944), Western Pacific Campaign begins
(1944), Cadet Nurse Corps Establishment (?);June
16,
Establishment of Adjutant General Corps, Finance Corps, Quartermaster Corps, and
Corps of Engineers (1775);
June 17,
Battle of Bunker Hill (1775), Valley Campaign ends (1862);
June 18,
War is
declared on Great Britain (1812);
June 19,
Battle of
the Philippine Sea (1944), Operation Joint Guard Ended (1998);
June 20,
Americans
Land on New Georgia Island (1943), Operation Joint Forge Began/Joint Guard Ended
(Bosnia-Herzegovina) (1998), Operation Allied Force Ended (Kosovo) (1999);
June 21,
Signal
Corps Established (1860);
June 22,
Germany Invades
Russia (1941), Pledge of Allegiance Recognized by Congress (1942), GI Bill
Signed Into Law (1944), Women In Military Service For America Memorial
Groundbreaking (1995),
June
23, Last
Confederate Forces surrender (1865);
June 24,
Berlin
Airlift begins (1948);
June
25, North Korea Invades South
Korea/Korean War Began (1950);
June 28,
Battle of Monmouth
(1778), Chemical Corps Established (1918);
June 29,
First US
Ground Forces Arrived in Korea (1950).
Notes from May 9
Meeting:
Paul Abbott of the Orange
County (Fullerton) Flyers talked about the team and the coming season.
Don Dutton has discounts
available, Club seats at only $6.
First game is June 12. Last chance
for tickets at June meeting.
Election of
2009-2010 officers and delegates were held.
For list, see left side of Newsletter.