American Legion
Post 305

Citizens Flag Alliance

The Post 305 Bugle

April 2007

Volume 3, Issue 3

COMMANDER'S CORNER

At the April meeting we will be nominating officers to serve for the next year, 2007- 2008. The nominating committee has been hard at work attempting to get nominations for all the positions to be elected. They are short a nomination for Post Historian. We need someone to step up and contact Dutch Dettinger at bdetti6419@aol.com and volunteer for this position.

Right after the meeting we will be preparing for our Spring Rummage Sale at Robinson Road Community Center. If you have any treasures that you can live without, bring them by the Community Center on Friday April 20 when we will be setting up. Saturday is the day for the sale.

The District’s Spring Convention also begins on Saturday April 21st. Delegates will be electing a new District Commander during the meeting.

The Post will have a representative at the Conroe High School awards night on April 14th to present JROTC medals to military and academic awardees. The ceremony will be at the Lone Star Convention Center beginning at 6:30 p.m.

I would like to thank everybody that participated in the Birdies for Charity contest. The official number of birdies during the tournament was 1651, and guess what! Two of our members guessed the correct number, Rudy Charest and Harlen Thornhill. Congratulations. I hope that one of you will win the Buick.

For God and Country,

Jim Bolin

SECOND VICE COMMANDER

Comrades

Saturday, April 21, is our American Legion Post's bi-annual Rummage Sale fundraiser.  Any members having items that may sell and who wish to donate please call me at the number given below.  Any member can bring items to the Robinson Rd. Community Building on Friday, April 20 (set-up day) or the 21 (sale day.)  Any member who can help transfer items from storage to the Community Building at the corner of Robinson and Hanna roads in Oak Ridge North on Friday, April 20 at about 8:30 A.M., also call me.  Any member who can help at the Rummage Sale on Saturday, April 21 from 7 A.M. to 3: P.M., or part of the time, also call me. Also, we will discuss this March 15, at our regular meeting. If you have any questions, call me at 936- 273-2688, or e-mail me at chuckandmarylou@yahoo.com.

Chuck Suhr
2d Vice Commander

PVT.CORY KOSKERS

Post 305 participated in the funeral of Pvt. Cory Koskers from the 82d Abn. Div. At the visitation Commander Bolin and Chaplain Gartman briefly met with the family of Pvt. Kosters and presented them with a Bible in remembrance of him. Other members of the Post attended the visitation on their own to pay their respects. Along the route of the funeral procession, ten members of the Post assembled to pay their respects to Pvt. Kosters. (See the picture below) Other members attended the service.

MEETING HIGHLIGHTS

At the meeting we planned how to support the family of Pvt. Cory Kosters, a Woodlands resident killed in Iraq.

We also approved three recommendations from the Ex. Comm.: First, to spend $150 to create welcome packages for new members. Second, to donate $100 to Norm Brawner (a Post 305 member) to support a Veterans Organization booth at a Cook-Off contest at the Montgomery County Fairgrounds. Third, to spend $50 to purchase a spot to sell soft drinks and hot dogs as a fundraiser for the Post during the Auxiliary’s Craft Show.

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The Finance Committee shall be charged with the administration of the financial policy, preparation of budget recommendations and supervision of receiving, disbursing and accounting of all Post funds.

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VETERANS ADVOCATE

IMPORTANT PHONE NUMBERS:

Houston VA Regional Center 1-713-383-7842
Montgomery County Veterans Service Office 1-936-539-7842
Your Legislators (Toll Free) 1-877-762- 8762-----1-866-272-6621-----1-888-762- 8760

The Houston MEDVAMC employs over 3000 people in a 6 story granite building on a 113 acre site, with free valet parking available (no tipping allowed) Monday through Friday, 0700 to 1730, except holidays. It has 343 hospital beds, a 40 bed spinal cord injury center and a 120 bed transitional care unit for long term-care. The MEDVAMC operates the largest VA Residency Program with 215 slots accounting for 580 Residents per academic year. Each year more than 1000 Students are trained through 112 affiliated Institutions of Higher Learning from 13 States. In 2005 the VA’s largest “Fisher house” opened at the MEDVAMC.

MEDVAMC operates a “Wound Clinic”. Weekly Skin Rounds are done in long-term units to identify and treat skin breakdowns early. Digital cameras are used to document wound healing. It uses special mattresses, protective foot boots, turning schedules, and skin care treatment.

A special team of medical care personnel is assigned to keep each patient and their families appraised of what medical treatment is being used, test results, care progress, anticipated problems, and help solve family complaints or problems.

In the past 4 years the MEDVAMC has been selected to start many new Health Care programs.

MY OPINION: The Houston VA Hospital is one of the best VA facilities in the nation. I understand that not every veteran can be satisfied all the time. I wish that all the other VA Hospitals could do as well as the Houston VA facility. I couldn’t possibly list all the accomplishments of this VA Medical Center, nor could I list all of the numerous awards they have received in the last 4 years. But one that I have to pass on is the praise they received after “Hurricane Katrina”. The staff and Administration of the Houston’s Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center exceeded any expectations that the nation could have expected of them. Their evacuation team, their medical staff, and their support staff and any others that were involved in their treatment of veterans and their families from Louisiana and Mississippi were great. If the Federal Government and the State Governments of those 2 states had done as well there would be no problems left from that hurricane. On 3 October 2005, by a unanimous vote the U.S. Senate adopted a “Resolution of Praise” (SEN R. 263) for all VA Employees in Texas. They received other received other awards for their contributions after Katrina. I thought this was the best.

Dutch Dettinger, Veteran's Advocate
The American Legion

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ANNOUNCEMENT

DEDICATION CEREMONY OF TEXAS MARINE MEDAL OF HONOR MONUMENT - May 25 -- The dedication will take place in Town Green Park in The Woodlands. The monument will honor Texas Marines who were recipients of the Medal of Honor. For more info contact Rita McClure at RMcClure@benchmarkmanagement.com

SOCIAL ACTIVITIES

The overwhelming non-response to my question “Who do we want to be?”,  seemed to be, we don’t want change. Except maybe a few would be open to some additional activities. The Ex. Comm. will try to create a committee to plan some additional voluntary social activities. We will continue to study where we might go from here.

Jim Bolin

POST'S POLICY

When at a meeting and not wearing a Legion hat, proper respect for the flag is to place your right hand over your heart.Back to Top

• WANTED Someone to step up and volunteer to be the Emblem Sales Person and relieve the Adjutant of this job. Job consists of taking orders for Legion Emblems/Clothing and placing the order and collecting money from the person who ordered the items. Turn the money into the Treasurer.
• WANTED: Anyone who would like to help out at any funerals, please contact the Chaplain, Warren Gartman.
• ANNOUNCEMENT: Due to lack of funds, future issues of the Bugle will be distributed by email, except for the April issue, which will be announcing the elections in May to the entire mailing list. If you know anyone who gets the Bugle by mail and not by email, please share this information.

POST ACTIVITIES

• March 2007 (as a web page) - March 2007 in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• January 2007 (as a web page) - January 2007 Newsletter in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• October 2006 (as a web page) - October 2006 Newsletter in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• September 2006 (as a web page) - September 2006 Newsletter in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• August 2006 (as a web page)

• July 2006 (as a web page) - July 2006 Newsletter in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• May 2006 (as a web page)

• April 2006 (as a web page) - April 2006 Newsletter in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• March 2006 Newsletter (as a web page) -- Click here to download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• February 2006 Newsletter (as a web page) -- Click here to download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• January 2006 Newsletter (as a web page) -- Click here to download in Adobe Acrobat PDF format

• December 2005 Newsletter (as a web page)

• November 2005 Newsletter (as a web page)

• August 2005 Newsletter (in Adobe Acrobat .pdf format)

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