General Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller VFW Post 1503 Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States DEC 14631 MINNIEVILLE ROAD DALE CITY, VIRGINIA 22193 703.670.4124 www.vfwpost1503.org 2014 CANTEEN HOURS: NEW CANTEEN HOURS: Sunday / Monday / Wednesday 12 Noon - 11 PM Tuesday / Thursday / Saturday 12 Noon - 12 Midnight • Friday 12 Noon - 2 AM COMMANDER’S CORNER Comrades and Sisters of “TEAM CHESTY PULLER”, HAPPY HOLIDAYS! POST OFFICERS Post Commander . . . . Randy Coker Senior Vice . . . . Sterling Moninghoff Junior Vice . . . . . . . . . . . Ed Bennett Quartermaster . . . . . . . . . Jim Spiker Judge Advocate . . . . . . Tom Gimble Surgeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . Julie Powell Chaplain . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jim Lovett 3 Year Trustee . . . . . . . John Dodge 2 Year Trustee. . . . . . . . . Ron Laney 1 Year Trustee . . . . . . . . Tim Brown Adjutant . . . . . . . . . . Ralph Steinway Service Officer . . . . . . . Mark Marth Past Commander . . . . . . Jim Martin The Holiday season is upon us and we are all busy getting ready for Christmas and New Year’s. Let me start by saying that October and November were two very good months for us here at 1503. Membership recruitment increased from last year, we are currently at 92% membership. The participation in all events in October and November was overwhelming. I am very proud of the members of this post always stepping up to the plate and taking care of business when it is time to roll up our sleeves. Speaking of stepping up and going “Above & Beyond”, I must take a moment and send a special THANK YOU out to Ray Vanhorn for his outstanding dedication and “Out of the Box” thinking, in the design and construction of this year’s haunted house. If you did not get a chance to go into it this year, please make sure to put it down as a “must do” for next year. Great job to Ray and all of those who volunteered to spend your day building and dressing up and scaring us all. Our Post Surgeon and a few dedicated volunteers completed the judging on this year’s Voice of Democracy, Patriots Pen and Teacher of the Year candidates. Folks, we had some outstanding candidates this year and thanks to Julie Powell, Jane Beyer and the Team of Dedicated Judges, Post 1503 had the 2nd place Voice of Democracy winner at the district level. The Purple Hearts/Wounded Veteran event lead by Papa Six and Joe Siata was very fun and it was successful as well, raising $6,000.00 for Veterans causes. This event was Over ´ followed by the US Navy’s 239th Birthday, thank you to Dave Powell and several of his team of volunteers who chaired that event. I can’t list every event that our members have been involved in since early October, all I can say is that we (Post 1503) have been very busy and our members are out in the community doing the work of the VFW. The National President of the Ladies Auxiliary paid us a visit on October 29th and she was very excited to be welcomed to Virginia by the largest VFW in the nation. She said that our post was beautiful and the members made her feel very welcome. Thanks to our Ladies Auxiliary President, Gina Meehan and all of our ladies in the Ladies Auxiliary for making her feel welcome. The Marine Corps 239th Birthday celebration was one of the top on my list of favorites for this year. Our guest of honor and a few Purple Heart warriors & guests… made this a very exciting event. Thanks to PaPa Six and his team of volunteers for chairing this event. Oh, did I forget to mention that we are also an official TOYS FOR TOTS drop off site this year. Tell your neighbors and friends to drop by and help out the community children by dropping off a new un-wrapped toy in the box. As most of you are reading this newsletter, we will have our Christmas Tree “Sales Team” in the pavilion dealing with the cold weather and selling the trees. They always welcome your help during this time of year. Our facility has never looked better, not only do we have a brand new digital sign out front, but our building and grounds have never looked better. A big “Thank You” goes out to our General Manager, John Meehan and our building staff, for keeping us looking great. During Veterans Day, we once again hit a milestone with Buddy Poppies and our volunteers hit the streets with the VFW message to the community… THANKS to all who gave a little of your time for Buddy Poppies!! Our Post is well on its way to reaching that coveted goal of “ALL AMERICAN”. If you have not noticed, we are now displaying each of our service flags out on the “Flag-Island” in front of the post. Each flag now has its own 20 foot pole to be proudly displayed on special holidays. Thank You to Boy Scout Troop 1919 for installing those poles. Yours in Comradeship Randy Coker Commander 2014-15 LADIES’ AUXILIARY LADIES’ AUXILIARY President . . . . . . . . . Regina Meehan HAPPY HOLIDAYS! I hope this season finds Sr. Vice President . . Linda Steinway you healthy, happy, and hopeful for the New Jr. Vice President . . . . . Judy Bridges Secretary . . . . . . . . . . . Betty Gimble Year. The Ladies Auxiliary has had a very Treasurer . . . . . . . . . . . . Karla Coker successful year because of the hard work of so Chaplain . . . . . . . . Joyce Del Vecchio many members. We are indeed blessed to have Conductress. . . . . . . Laura Anderson many helpful hands willing to work for our veterans and their Guard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jamia Smith families. Certainly they are the angels walking among us. I know 1st Yr Trustee . . . . . . . Sarah Dugas they are inspired by our veterans and military who have given so 2nd Yr Trustee Rebecca Moninghoff much to defend our freedom and protect our nation. We can 3rd Yr Trustee. . . . . . . . Joyce Gibbs Historian . . . . . . . . . . . . Joyce Gibbs never thank you all enough. Patriotic Instrctr . . Ernestine Jenkins In addition to the annual hustle and bustle, we have many activities planned for December. It's a busy time of the year, but please consider going on the December 13th McGuire VA Hospital visit. The patients really look forward to these visits, and the experience is even more rewarding for those who take the time to make the trip. Our monthly meeting on December 17th is going to be a pot-luck, cookie exchange and social. (Even angels need to play sometimes!) So, ladies, bring in that special dish to share and some of those homemade cookies. I will be sending out an email with all the details within the next week, so keep your eyes open. If you don't get emails, call me for the information. Also, in keeping with the season, we are going to celebrate Christmas with our Veterans' children and grandchildren on December 21st at 2:00 PM. Rumor has it that Mr. and Mrs. Claus may stop by, so please bring the children to the Post for a fun-filled afternoon. SAVE THE DATE: The 2015 Celebration of Life Gala and Silent Auction is set for April 11, 2015. The featured entertainment is going to be the Nowhere Men. You heard them play for the Purple Heart Benefit, and you won't want to miss their performance at the gala. All proceeds will benefit our Cancer Aid and Research Program. WELCOME to Our Newest Members: Bonnie Duncan, Kerry Gray, Leslie Lauver, Donna Smith-Lopez, Sherron-Lee Meadows and Heidi Vanderwest. We look forward to working with you. Merry Christmas to All, God Bless You and Your Families, and God Bless America! Gina Meehan President, Ladies Auxiliary to VFW Post 1503 [email protected] 703-670-9675 CHAPLAIN’S CORNER I LOVE CHRISTMAS! The celebration of the birth of Christ and the beauty and wonder of the season make it “the most wonderful time of the year” for me. In recent years, however, the season has been accompanied by a growing irritation. Every year “Christmas Stuff” comes out earlier and earlier creeping all the way back to early Fall. Christmas used to be limited to December, but now we find radio stations playing Christmas music in early November. Stores start advertising Christmas Specials in October, and Christmas Candy appears in late September. If we’re not careful, this growing deluge can numb us - even sour us to what should be a season of gratitude and awe. When that irritation begins to rise in my spirit, I try to do one thing... Remember. I remind myself what Christmas means, who Jesus is, and why He came. I remember the LOVE and Grace of a forgiving God who sent us rescue in the person of His Son. I remember that, ultimately, only one gift really matters - God’s “Indescribable, Only One Gift.” 2 Cor 9:15 I remember that the salvation Christ came to provide is both the Gift and the Giver all wrapped in one. Jesus is our life all year long, and He is the greatest wonder, “O Come Let Us Adore HIM!” PRAYER: Living God, I thank you for the unspeakable gift of Your Son, Draw my heart to Your own, that my worship to and gratitude to Your Son will never be diminished by the distraction of the world around me. AMEN James Lovett - VFW Post 1503 Chaplain Call me anytime (703) 590-9371 or (703) 551-1166 JUNIOR VICE COMMANDER The 2014 Veterans Day Buddy Poppy campaign was a tremendous success! The total collected for our Veterans Relief Fund was $4,622.55. Just as he did on Memorial Day weekend, Jerry Campbell led the way by collecting approximately $2,400 of our Veterans Day total. The total collected during Veterans Day, when added to the funds collected during the Memorial Day campaign, resulted in over $13,200.00 collected during 2014! Once again, the entire force of our post was represented in this effort, and was the reason for our great success. A heart-felt thank you to every person who distributed Buddy Poppies or volunteered time administering, our Memorial Day and Veterans Day campaigns. Ed Bennett Jr. Vice Commander Raley Moore distributing Buddy Poppies at Pitkin's Home Center in Dale City alongside a Girl Scout Daisy working to honor our Veterans. FACILITY HAPPENINGS Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to All! First off please be advised that we will have NO WINGS during the month of December. This is because of the many parties going on during the month plus Wing Teams have a lot on their plate with the holidays coming up. QUEEN OF HEARTS and WEEKLY Drawing will be held as usual. New Years Eve tickets are still available. Cost is $75.00 a person. See flyer elsewhere in this newsletter for more information. I will say that as of Nov 19th we had 150 tickets already sold and at 300 I will have to cut off sales, so don't wait till the last minute. GUN SHOW here on the weekend of the 13th. FOOD BASKETS Delivery will be on the 20th of December. Sign up sheet on front door in the Canteen if you would like to participate. We are again delivering to needy families that 5 local middle schools have furnished us names for help. We are looking at approximately 140 families and 600 people, so we need drivers and helpers. KIDS CHRISTMAS PARTY Sunday, December 21st in the A Hall from 2 pm to 4 pm. CLOSING EARLY on DECEMBER 24TH at 7P.M. CLOSED ALL DAY CHRISTMAS DAY. REMINDER - This month's monthly meetings and future meeting locations are as follows. VFW Members will meet in the A Hall. Ladies Aux. will now meet in the Meeting Room. Men's Aux. will be in the Dance Floor area. All meeting are on the 3rd Wed. of each month. NO BINGO on Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, or New Years Day. John Meehan Facility Manager MILITARY ORDER OF THE PURPLE HEART Patriots, We had a small turnout at our last Chapter meeting and I am sorry that an injury made me miss the meeting as well, but our Junior Vice Commander moved forward in my absence. Thanks Leo! Also, thanks to Leo and Dom for carrying our Chapter colors on Veterans Day at Quantico! I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving and some of you showed up to help out with unloading Christmas trees. We still could use help selling trees, come out and see me! Our next Chapter meeting is scheduled for Saturday, December 20th and that is the same date that our VFW Post #1503 will be handing out Christmas Food Baskets to our needy families. Please come out and help! There will be a sign up sheet in the Post canteen after Thanksgiving. We usually meet at Post on that Saturday morning, get our assigned routes and load our vehicles and leave no later than 0900. We are usually finished by 1000. We will then have a very informal Chapter meeting with refreshments and best wishes! Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! Let’s continue to be proactive in helping our wounded Veterans and their families!! Our Chapter’s mission is to serve our combat wounded veterans and their families. I hope to see everyone at our next Chapter Meeting @ 1000 on Saturday, December 20th. Call me at 703-878-7139 if you have any questions. MERRY CHRISTMAS! GOD BLESS AMERICA!!! Ron Laney, Commander Semper Fi Chapter 1775 MOC / MOCA On November 1st we served wings to our members and friends and we did better than last month. Pup Tent 14 and the MOCA held another successful monthly meeting on November 12th. We voted on spending a bunch of money for food and gifts for the upcoming visit to McGuire VA Medical Center. No Wings in December. December 10th is the monthly meeting and we will be having a get together and some food for the members. The McGuire VA Medical Center visit will be held on December 13th and will be our Annual Christmas visit. We will be handing out gifts to the patients, and feeding them chicken and having Kariaoke for them. The patients always look forward to this party. They have some great singers. You are invited to come along with us and the patients love the company. We will meet for Breakfast at 1503 and at 10:00 a.m. will depart to ride down to McGuire Medical VA Center in Richmond, Virginia. THE MOCA/MOC WISHES EVERYONE A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! KEEP THEM SMILING IN BEDS OF WHITE! Respectfully, Sarah Dugas Michael Del Vecchio MOCA President [email protected] Seam Squirrel, Pup Tent 14 [email protected] POST SURGEON “Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful, And since we’ve no place to go, Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.” It’s hard to believe another month has come and gone, and that we are well into the holiday season. I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. As we look forward to Hanukkah, Christmas, Kwanzaa and ringing in 2015, please be mindful of fire safety. Change those batteries in the smoke and carbon monoxide detectors, and consider using battery-operated or electric candles instead of wax. This month brings closure to this year’s Voice of Democracy and Patriots Pen scholarship programs. Competition was keen, especially within the Patriots Pen program. More than 130 Patriots Pen entries were judged this year. Ten entries were judged within the Voice of Democracy Program. Congratulations to the following award recipients: VOICE OF DEMOCRACY First Place – Justin Lorence Justin also won Second Place in the VFW District 10 program Second Place – Sara Valentine Third Place – Natalie Presley PATRIOTS PEN First Place – Raley Moore Second Place – Jessica Laureano Third Place – Qira Allen Fourth Place – Molly Brackney Fifth Place – Kammeryn Pierce Sixth Place – Jessica Bevelacqua Seventh Place – Paige Dinter Eighth Place – Kate Gonzales THANK YOU to Mrs. Jane Beyer, Ladies Auxiliary, for her knowledge, wisdom, and experience with the VFW Scholarship Programs. I’d also like to extend a thank you to the Ladies’ and Men’s Auxiliaries for your support, as well as the Comrades who supported either through advisement and guidance or by handing out flyers and judging entries. I’m especially grateful to the following members who judged the entries: Danny Gibbs, Jim Moore, and John Dodge for Voice of Democracy. John David Allen, Milton Moore, Susie Williams-Moore, Laura Anderson, Mac Miller, Lindy Heaster, Marty Heaster, Joyce Gibbs, John Crawford, John McElhenny, for first round of Patriots Pen judging; and, Ed Tatum, Ray Van Horn, Marty Heaster, and Tim Brown for final round of Patriots Pen judging to determine 2nd through 8th places. Thank you for the hours you freely gave to ensure a fair competition with so many entries. Please keep our troops serving at home and abroad in your thoughts and prayers this holiday season. May each of you have a blessed Holiday Season. Merry Christmas! Julie Powell Post Surgeon MEN’S AUXILIARY MEN’S AUXILIARY President . . . . . . . . . . Milton Moore I would like to thank everyone who Sr. Vice President . . . . . . Jim Moore participated in the Men's Auxiliary 4th Annual Jr. Vice President . . . . Hillary Jenkins Secretary . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jack Pesce Chili Cook-Off. This year we had ten entries. A Treasurer . . . . . . . . . . Marty Heaster raffle was conducted for 50 wooden nickles. Chaplain . . . . . . . . . . . . Doug Parker Congratulations to the lucky winner, Mrs Judy Guard. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Jason Sears Case. She accepted the raffle and then donated them back to the 3rd Year Trustee. . . . . Ramon Ayala Auxiliary. Thank you very much. 2nd Year Trustee . . . . . . Earl Franks The winners of the chili cook-off were; 1st place - Ganges 1st Year Trustee . . . . . John Childers Hopkins, 2nd place - Don and Cindy O'Connor and 3rd place Past President. . . . . . Gene Bellando went to Joe and Cathy Lemarbe. I also would like to give special thanks to the following judges who made our event successful and competitive; Post Commander Randy Coker, Executive Chef, Phil Prifold, member Kacey Collins and member Mathew Storen. During our November meeting a donation was made to "Hope For The Warriors" organization. We had another great year raising funds for veteran programs throughout the year. Buddy poppies program this year was very successful with the time and effort the Men's Auxiliary led by Mr Jim Moore who is Senior Vice President of the Men's Auxiliary. Thanks for all you do for the post and those who made it possible with the volunteers on your team. Also special thanks to Raymond VanHorn for outstanding talents you and other members from the post Halloween haunted house. Thanks again to everyone who makes teamwork so successful. On December 13th, representatives from our Men's Auxiliary will travel to the Veterans Hospital in Richmond for the annual Christmas event to visit the patients. We will again be distributing wheelchair gloves as a helpful tool that the veterans can use. This is our 4th year of participation and we truly enjoy the camaraderie with everyone. Congratulations to the newest Men's Auxiliary members who were voted in at the November: Michael H. Drapen, Jeffery S. Walker, Charles E. Nedorolik, Charles E. Miller, Juan A. Mcphail, James T. Rhodes, Donald A. Bell, Mark W. Kramer, Richard H. Smith and William L. Smith. On behalf of the Men's Auxiliary, we would like to wish everyone a safe and happy holiday season. As always, please pray for our men and women of the Armed Forces who will not be home to enjoy the holidays with family and friends. God Bless them all and may God Bless America. Remember, Commitment: "The journey not the arrival matters." Our next scheduled meeting will be held on Wednesday, December 17th, 7:30 pm at the post. Hope to see you all there. My contact number is 571-606-7490 or email is [email protected] Milton Moore President, Men’s Auxiliary CHILDRENS CHRISTMAS PARTY!!! VFW Post 1503 14631 Minnieville Road, Dale City, VA Sunday December 21, 2014 2:00-4:00pm Music, Fun, Food, Games, and Prizes With a Special Guest Attending!!!! For More Information Contact: Mia Smith @ 703-986-4505 Concealed carry course coming soon… Don’t miss it! LEGALLY CARRY A CONCEALED HANDGUN IN OVER 35 STATES! GirlOnFireDC, LLC is coming to VFW Post 1503 to offer a 4-‐hour concealed carry course that allows you to apply for permits (VA concealed handgun permit & UT concealed firearm permit) valid in over 35 states. Just one 4-‐hour course for legal carry in VA, PA, WV, NC ...and many more states! See reciprocity map of coverage states below. Course Description: The course is a 4-‐hour classroom based course taught by NRA certified & Utah BCI certified firearm instructors. Course instruction includes the following topics: handgun safety rules, handgun parts and operation, ammunition, fundamentals of shooting, safe firearms handling, U.S. federal firearms regulations, practical and legal considerations, and more. Although this is NOT a live fire course and range time is not required, we encourage you to cultivate your proficiency skills by scheduling one-‐on-‐one live firearms training GirlOnFire DC, LLC. Join us on for this exciting course that is being discounted for us! Date: Saturday, December 13, 2014 Time: 4:00pm to 8:00pm Location: VFW Post 1503 Cost: Only $99 per person (Pre-‐payment is required) REGISTER: http://www.girlonfiredc.com/#!AmericanLegion1503/c1tch Contact: [email protected] -‐ 877-‐634-‐6365 or Randy Coker GirlOnFire DC ⏐ 1-877-634-6365 www.GirlOnFireDC.com Sunday Monday 1 Tuesday 2 Wednesday 3 BINGO 7:30 Boy Scouts 7:30 Thursday 4 Friday 5 BINGO 7:30 6Toys4Tots Dinner 5-9 DJ Danny Karaoke 8-12 7 8 9 Pearl Harbor Day 10 BINGO 7:30 District 10 Meeting MOCA 7:00 MOC 7:30 Boy Scouts 7:30 11 BINGO 7:30 12 14 DJ Danny Karaoke 8-12 Breakfast 9-12:30 WINGS Weekly Drawings Queen of Hearts McGuire Gun Show 3-D Band Breakfast 9-12:30 WINGS Weekly Drawings Queen of Hearts 15 Gun Show DJ Carol Karaoke 13Cooties Dinner 5-9 Breakfast 9:00 - 12:00 Saturday BoD Meeting 16 BINGO 7:30 Breakfast 9:00 - 12:00 17 Ladies Aux. 7 Mens Aux. 7:30 Post Meeting 7:30 Boy Scouts 7:30 18 BINGO 7:30 19 20 Dinner 5-9 DJ Bertus Karaoke 8-12 Purple Heart Mtg. Food Baskets DJ Carol Breakfast 9-12:30 WINGS Weekly Drawings Queen of Hearts 21 22 Kid’s Christmas Party 23 24 Christmas Day POST CLOSED BINGO 7:30 2:00-4:00 29 Breakfast 9:00 - 12:00 26 Dinner 5-9 27 DJ Carol Karaoke Breakfast 9-12:30 WINGS Weekly Drawings Queen of Hearts Breakfast 9:00 - 12:00 28 25 30 BINGO 7:30 31 New Year’s Eve Dinner Dance LUNCH SPECIALS PREPARED DAILY – (703) 670-9002 VETERANS OF FOREIGN WARS POST 1503 14631 Minnieville Road Woodbridge, Virginia 22193 NEXT MONTHLY MEETING DECEMBER 17TH! www.vfwpost1503.org
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