NEXT POST MEETING: TUESDAY, January 10, 2012

PLACE: THE SIZZLER, 1401 N. HARBOR BLVD.

TIME:  DINNER 6:00 PM, MEETING 7:00 PM

Susan Berumen, County Archivist, Orange County Archives

 

Susan will share the history and operation of the Orange County Archives.   It is a great resource most of us know very little about.

Continuous Service Certificates.  See if your name is listed in the Commander’s memo below, we invite you to be our guest for dinner at this meeting.  Please call the Post hotline at (714) 871-2412 to make a reservation.

 

Commander’s Club. We are seeking at least one additional member. The Commander’s Club supports Veterans Day, Boys/Girls State, other Scholarships and Memorial Day.

Post 1000 Members.  See our newsletter, particularly Page 2 for important information that may be helpful to you.  If you want to get this Newsletter monthly, Call (714)-871-2412.

Chaplain’s Message to the Members:  Chaplain’s Message to the Members:  “Who is like the wise man?  Who knows the explanation of things?  Wisdom brightens a man’s face and changes its hard appearance.” (Ecclesiastes 8:1-2, NIV translation)  If I can be of service to you, please give me a call.  Jim Howland

 

Commander’s Corner:  Happy New Year!  We had a busy and fun December.  To start the month, we gathered at the Hillcrest Park Memorial to remember Pearl Harbor Day.  Thank you Jeff Harris for helping me with the service.  Next came our meeting where carolers from Sunny Hills High School entertained us with beautiful songs. Thank you, George Miller, for arranging for them again.  Our 4th Annual Christmas Party was on the 17th.  We had a great time!  Special “Thank you’s” to Ambra and Rich Wakefield, along with Mike and Pat Hyland for setting the party up.  Thank you also to George Miller for coordinating and sponsoring our group at the condominium.  Soon we will begin with the selections of Boys and Girls State, and Youth Environmental Leadership Conference participants.  I continue to input to the District at their meetings and at the Orange County Veterans Advisory Council.  I hope your New Year is full of exciting and wonderful experiences.  Come spend some time with us at the meetings.

WWII Atomic Veterans- If you served in Japan during the first year after war’s end, please check with a Service Officer for a new list/times/locations of presumptive illness’ associated with service in the radioactive zone. 

 

Continuous Membership Certificates:  At January’s meeting we will pass out certificates, awarded in five year increments (5 Years, 10 Years etc).  Please try to come if possible so that we can honor you for your continued service to both the Legion and our Nation.  If you cannot attend we will send it in the mail to you. 5 Years- Mike Albertson, Robert Alvares, Albert Homes, Urban Miyares, Christopher Negrete, and Harold Plett.  10 Years-Bruce Anderson, Richard Churchwell, Haskell Ford, William Gallavan, Stan Lund, Bucky Maurin, Richard Nolan, Gordon Palmer, and Howard Salsitz.  15 Years-Ralph Digregorio, John Dymond, F Richard Jones, William Lewis, William Schenk, and Van Schultz.  20 Years-Carl Anderson, Richard Barratt, Kenneth Bonderud, Fredrick Dear, William Dennis, Mario Favaro, John Hill, Harry Page, Patrick Putnam, and Myron Roberts.  25 Years- Don Bankhead, Ronald Getzan, Paul Kelso, Sterling Kirby, and Richard Scott.  30 Years- Archie Baker  40 Years- Karl Olmsted.  50 Years- Tex Powell. 

New Renewal Option:  This year you may pay online to National if you wish to.  The Legion has been conducting a trial run with a few states around the US.  After payment, national will take out their per capita, and then send the rest of the money to Department, where they will have to separate out the per capita and return to the posts what money is theirs.  That will be difficult, but not impossible, since the posts have different dues.  It turns around the sequence with money, i.e. the post will be the last to have the money, and the member won’t get a card until their renewal is verified by national level. OR you can do your dues directly to the Post as you always have, get your card from us then, and the delay will be transparent to you except that you may get a second notice even though you have paid your dues and are current in every way. J

 

 

Notes from December meeting. Commander Marilyn Harris called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m., and she welcomed all guests. She introduced the Sunny Hills Choral Group who performed several Christmas carols.

 

Following the presentation Commander Harris led the Legion as the Minutes and Finance Reports for the October meeting were approved unanimously.  Chaplain Jim Howland then updated the post on the status of members that need continued support and prayers.  He also advised members of the passing of member Clyde Shreve.

 

Commander Harris passed out Veterans Day certificates to those who participated.  Ambra Wakefield passed out flyers for the Christmas party on 12/17/11. All are welcome.  Service Officer Mike Hyland asked for donations for Cabrillo Villas, new clothing such as socks or underwear are needed.  Small working appliances are okay also.

 

A cheer went up at the table of Don and Terri Dutton when they received word that their daughter had passed the State Board Medical Exam.  A round of applause followed.

 

Judge Advocate Neil Reich advised members that they would be getting a COLA on their VA checks similar to Social Security or 3.6% effective 12/1 and will show up in the January checks.  If you need specifics for your situation contact Neil.

 

Important Information When You Need It

IF you do not see want you need, call us at (714) 871-2412

DD 214/Discharge Papers:  Do you know where your discharge papers are?  Does your family know where they are?  We often hear from families that they don’t know where they are.  Without this important document your burial benefits will be delayed several weeks unnecessarily.  If you plan to be buried in a national cemetery, it won’t happen, until proof is given to the cemetery.  Please give a copy to someone or let your next of kin know where to find it.

 

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 Orange County, call your County offices to find the Veterans Service Office location nearest you.

 

Veterans Homes Qualifications: Any questions, call us at (714) 871-2412 or go to www.cdva.ca.gov 

 

For those with internet access at home or at the city library, (it is open and expanded now) 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. 

 

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.” 

 

Hospital/Rehabilitation Program/Villages at Cabrillo.   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.

 

Memory Lane Dates:  Dec 29, FDR Announces US as “Arsenal of Democracy” (1940); Dec 30, First Liberty Ship SS Patrick Henry in Service (1941); Dec 31, American Forces assault Quebec City (1775), Battle of Stones River (Murfreesboro) begins (1862), New Guinea Campaign ends (1944), Official End of WWII (1946); Jan 1, Assault on Fire Base Burt (1968), Operation Northern Watch Began (Iraq) (1997); Jan 2, Battle of Stones River ends (Murfreesboro) (1862); Jan 3, Battle of Princeton (1777); Jan 6, First Contingent of WAVES Arrive in Hawaii (1945), President Roosevelt Called for Nurse Draft (1945); Jan 8, Battle of New Orleans (last battle of War of 1812) (1815), Operation Cedar Falls Began (1967); Jan 9, US Forces Land on Luzon/Philippine Islands (Operation Mike I Began)(1945); Jan 12, 82 Enlisted WACs Arrived for Duty at Army HQs, Vietnam (1967); Jan 14, Treaty of Paris ratified, ending Revolutionary War (1784), Battle of Cowpens (1781), Casablanca Conference Begins (1943); Jan 16/17, Operation Desert Storm Began (1991); Jan 20, Battle of Khe Sanh (1968); Jan 21, Birth of modern National Guard (1903); Jan, Allies Land at Anzio (1944), Operation Dewey Canyon begins (1969); Jan 23, Papau Campaign concludes (1943); Jan 24, Dr. Mary Walker Awarded the Medal of Honor (1866), Casablanca Conference Ends (1943), New Guinea Campaign begins (1943); Jan 25, Ardennes-Alsace Campaign (Battle of the Bulge) (1945), Operation Thunderbolt Began (1951); Jan 26, Army Nurse Held POW by Germans Released in POW Exchange (1945), Operation Cedar Falls ends (1967); Jan 27, First 8AF Raid on Germany (1943), First WAACs Arrive/Sent Overseas (1943), Siege of Leningrad Ends (1944), Army Nurses Waded Ashore at Anzio (1944), Jan 27/28, Signing of Vietnam Peace Accord (1973); Jan 28, First Women Marines Arrived in Hawaii (1945), India-Burma Campaign ends (1945), US involvement in Vietnam War ends (1973); Jan 30, Tet Offensive in South Vietnam Began (1968); Jan 31, US Forces Land in Marshall Islands (1944), Battle of Hue Began (1968), Operation Just Cause Ended (Panama) (1990