NEXT POST MEETING: TUESDAY May 10, 2011

PLACE: THE SIZZLER, 1401 N. HARBOR BLVD.

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

PROGRAM: Phil Ratner, FIVE GUYS RESTAURANTS

 

Our speaker, Phil Ratner has over 20 years executive management experience with restaurants including Roadhouse Grill, Hometown Buffet, El Torito and Acapulco. He is now a franchise owner of FIVE GUYS, soon to open in Fullerton.

 

We will also have our final  nominations  and election for officers for 2011-2012.

 

Memorial Day Ceremonies.  We need volunteers to help with program on the following days at Loma Vista Memorial Park located at 701 E. Bastanchury Rd. You can come for one day or all four.  Many bring kids and grandkids to help them understand the importance of Memorial Day.  If you can help on any of these days, contact Ed Paul at (714) 871-2412.  No prior experience is necessary for any of these jobs.

Friday, 5/28, 7:30 am.  Pre-position crosses around the cemetery for Saturday.

Saturday, 5/29, 7:20 AM   Help organize the 400 volunteers who will come to place the flags and crosses but need instructions on how to do it. Some easy jobs sitting down available with no heavy lifting required.  Refreshments provided by Alcoa.

Monday, 5/30 - 10:00 AM     Attend the ceremony, honoring the U. S. Army

Tuesday, 5/31 - 7:30 AM      Pick up the flags and crosses and return to storage

Wednesday, 6/1 – 8:30 AM  Iron flags – At Red Cross Building, 1155 Lemon St.  (East side of Hillcrest Park.  Bring Iron and towel.

 

Chaplain’s Message to the Members:  “Better is the little of the righteous than the abundance of many wicked. For the arms of the wicked will be broken; but the Lord sustains the righteous.” (Psalm 37:16-17, NAS version)  If I can be of service to you, please give me a call.  Jim Howland

 

This month we transferred  T H Dollarhide to Post Everlasting.

 

Commander’s Corner:  If you would like to hold a position in the Post or move around a bit, please contact Ed Paul.  He is acting as the election committee.  May and June bring the school awards ceremonies and the summer events.  Members of our Post and The American Veterans Memorial Association people have put a lot of effort into making new equipment, organizing the storage shed, and updating the maps, which have been huge tasks.  In addition to Al Blake, Jeff Harris, Ed Paul, Pansy Paul, Gary Poggensee, and Richard Wakefield, , special thanks goes to Mike Hyland, John Matthews, Larry Sears and Alan Wiles for joining the crew working on getting ready for Memorial Day.  They are close to finishing that monumental task.  Wow!!!  Terrific!!!  We need volunteers to help coordinate the community volunteers getting out the flags and crosses, and then getting them put away.  (Saturday morning, and Tuesday morning early for the pick up)  In mid-May, our three Youth Environmental Conference students (one from each of the Fullerton high schools) will head off to the north for a power-packed educational weekend.  Following the end of the school year our six high school juniors will head off to Boys and Girls State.  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. 

 

Special Note:  Thank you to all of the Legion families for joining in supporting the Wakefield family during this challenging time.  They appreciate our help very much.  If you can help with a meal once in a while, please contact Ed Paul.

 

The membership drive for 2011 will be coming to a close soon.  If you have a 2011 card in your hand, please do not pay a second time.   Call Richard Wakefield or Larry Sears if you are concerned.

 

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. (Villages at Cabrillo)

 

Veterans Homes: There are no waiting lists for the Barstow and Lancaster homes.  There are special openings in Chula Vista.   Information: www.cdva.ca.gov  or Contact Lynn Scott, CalVet  Assistant Deputy Secretary, for more information at 916-657-5368. 

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, call the Post at (714) 871-2412 and we will assist you.

 

Important Dates: May 4 Officer’s Meeting at Marilyn’s 7pm; May 8, Mother’s Day; May 10, Post Meeting;; May 15, Peace Officers Memorial Day (fly your flag half-staff until sunset); May 21, Armed Forces Day (Fly your flag), May 22, National Maritime Day; May 30-Memorial Day Program at Loma Vista, 10am.

 

Memory Lane Dates:  May 1, Cambodia Campaign Began (1970), Operation Northern Watch Ended (2003); May 2, Women’s Overseas Service League Established (1921), Berlin Falls to Red Army, Germany Surrenders in Italy (1945), Axis Forces/Germans Surrender in Italy (1945); May 4, Battle of Coral Sea Began (1942), Operation Restore Hope Ended (Somalia) (1993); May 5, Fall of Corregidor (1942), SS Black Point, Last Merchant Ship Sunk by U-Boat (1945), Occupation of Germany ends (1955), Mini-Tet Began (1968); May 6, Battle of Chancellorsville ends (1863), Corregidor Falls, Germans Surrender in the West (7th also listed) (1942); May 7, Battle of the Coral Sea (1942), Unconditional Surrender of all German Forces Signed (Berlin) (1945); May 8, Battle of Spotsylvania begins (1864), Battle of Coral Sea Ended (1942), V-E Day, German Unconditional Surrender Signed (Berlin) (1945), US Navy Mined North Vietnamese Ports (1972); May 10, American Forces capture Fort Ticonderoga (1775), Germans Begin All Out Offensive in the West (1940), Last US Forces surrender in the Philippines (1942), Battle of Hamburger Hill (1969), Operation Linebacker (1972); May 11, Fourth Battle of Monte Cassino and Rome Offensive Began (1944), Battle of Dong Ap Bia (Hamburger Hill) begins (1969); May 12, Charleston, SC falls to British (1780); May 13, US Navy Nurse Corps Established (1908), Axis Forces Capitulate in North Africa (1943); May 14, Army Ordnance Corps established (1812), Operation Junction City ends (1967); May 15, Valley Campaign begins (1862), Dutch Army Surrenders (1940), Women’s Auxiliary Corps (WAAC) Established (1942), The Mayaguez Incident (1975); May 20, 20 -  Battle of Dong Ap Bia (Hamburger Hill) ends (1969); May 21, Battle of Spotsylvania ends (1864), American Red Cross Founded by Clara Barton (1881); May 22, Battle of Cold Harbor begins (1864); May 24, Allies break out of Anzio beachhead (1944); May 27, The Army Historical Foundation is founded (1983), Air Force Opened All Aircraft to Women (1993); May 28, Battle of Cantigny (1918), Belgium Army Surrenders (1940); May 30, Memorial Day (First Designated in 1868).

 

Notes from April Meeting: Commander Marilyn Harris called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m., and she welcomed all guests and members.  1st Vice Commander George Miller introduced the guest speaker for the night, Dr of Physical Therapy, Ryan Hartshorne.  Ryan is a graduate of Fullerton Union High School and USC, and he works at Fullerton Physical Therapy & Sports Care, Inc., located at 101 Laguna Road across the street from St Jude hospital.  His clinic is a physical therapist owned and operated facility that was founded in 1958 and it is dedicated to providing excellence in outpatient rehabilitation in a caring, comfortable, and timely environment.   Ryan explained to the post that modern physical therapy was established in America towards the end of the 19th century when orthopedic surgeons began treating children with disabilities and employing professionals that were trained in physical education, massage, and remedial exercise. These treatments were applied and promoted further during the Polio outbreak of 1916. During the First World War physical therapists were recruited to work with and restore physical function to injured soldiers, and the field of physical therapy was institutionalized at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington D.C. following the outbreak of World War 1.  Ryan went on to explain that physical therapy today is a health care profession which aims to enhance and restore functional ability and quality of life to those with physical impairments or disabilities. Physical therapists examine each individual and develop a plan using treatment techniques to promote the ability to move, reduce pain, restore function, and prevent disability.  Legionnaires are encouraged to call Ryan’s clinic at 714-871-0460, and visit his website at www.fullertonpt.com to inquire and learn more about the advantages of physical therapy.

 

Service Officer Mike Hyland briefed all members on new disabled veteran’s tax legislation that is being debated in the House of Representatives.  Currently veterans receiving 40  percent or lower rates of disability must “offset” their benefit with their retired pay.  Furthermore, those service members that were medically retired without 20 years of service (Chap 61 retirees) have never been included in relief from this offset, as the phased offset was intended for 20 year military retirees only.  The legion is advocating that military pay is compensation for longevity of honorable military service, while VA service-connected disability compensation is for medical conditions incurred while on active duty.  These payments are made for two distinct and different reasons, and one should not be used to pay for the other.  

 

Commander Marilyn Harris briefed the membership on the District 29 meeting she attended. In order to generate funds, the Department (state level) is planning to put forth a Resolution at the Department Convention to raise dues by $5.50. Currently, $21.50 from each annual $35.00 membership, is paid through to the Department and National levels. The post keeps $13.50. Doing the math, this means that per capita, when forwarding membership, would go up to $27, with $8 left to the Post. Lastly,

Adjutant Ed Paul reminded the post that elections for all positions will be held soon.  This is the second call for nominations.  Contact Ed Paul for information.