VFW District 8 Newsletter

CWO5 Randle M. Tolliver, USN (Ret)

Commander 

For veterans in crisis, the Veterans Crisis Line's number is "988” then press "1”.

Homebound veterans requiring assistance please contact any member. 

Veterans experiencing, or at risk of homelessness, please contact any member or the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at (877) 424-3838.

Buddy Checks! Please call or go visit elderly or homebound veterans and see how they are doing and if they need help.

We are always looking to have veterans who are eligible and want to continue serving our community to join us. If you are interested, please contact any member or post. 

For our comrades who want to continue serving their communities but no longer have a VFW post, VFW District 8 has the answer: the establishment of a VFW Detachment, having a presence in the community without the burden of maintaining a post. The Det would be in the community, doing VFW business and outreach as an element of the parent post. If you are interested, please contact (573) 924-2382.

Legislative news:

Folks, please contact your senator and representative to voice your support for several pieces of legislation to support Missouri Veterans. These include:

Funding the Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) with a stable funding solution. The MVC manages the seven Missouri Veterans Homes, six cemeteries, and numerous veterans’ programs.  

Passing HJR 115 and SJR 88 to provide ‘Disabled Veterans Property Tax and Homestead Exemption” for 100% service-connected disabled veterans. Versions of this bill has been filed every year since 2018 and every year, Missouri state bureaucracy has killed it. hjr115 has cleared committee, please call rep. Jonathan Patterson, Speaker of the House at (573) 751-0907 and tell him to schedule HJR115 for floor vote asap and to support the bill

Passing HB 3029, "The Veterans Benefits Protection Act”, to protect veterans from unaccredited "Claim Sharks” predatory claims assistance practices. It will enforce federal VA standards, prohibit charging for initial claims or pre-appeal fees. It also requires clear disclosures and prohibits unauthorized access to veterans VA data.

We are adamantly opposed to Section 42.028 of Senate Bill 974. We strongly support the rest of the bill that would do great things for the Missouri National Guard, but this section would effectively legitimize "Claim Sharks” business practices.

Please contact your representative to voice your opposition of Section 42.028. You can find your representative at https://house.mo.gov/legislatorlookup and your senator at https://www.senate.mo.gov/LegisLookup

Also, please support the "Major Richard Star Act” (H.R. 2102 and S. 1032). Today, medically retired veteran’s Department of War retirement pay is reduced to offset their VA disability compensation. These are fundamentally different benefits, earned for different reasons, yet Congress refuses to act.  Please thank Senator Hawley who is a co-sponsor, but call Senator Schmitt, at (202) 224-5721, and your Congressman / Congresswoman and ask them to do the right thing. You can find your congress person at https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative .

Local events: 

The time and place of these and local post meetings and other events are provided on each post’s Facebook site; come join us!

Post 3777 in Festus is hosting "Friday Night Live” with Bill Puwill on 10 April and Bob Stegall on 24 April at 900 VFW Drive. On 11 April they are holding a karaoke contest starting at 7 pm. For more information call (636) 937-5400.

Every Tuesday, Post 5331 in Cedar Hill host "Veterans Coffee Talk” at 9 am at 1 Lynn Lane in Cedar Hill. If you have questions or would like more information, please call EverTrue @ (314) 446-2539, Col. (retired) Ted Hodgson @ (314) 221-2096 or Mark Newton @ (636) 222-3521.

Every Wednesday, Post 5896 is hosting an "all-you-can-eat” breakfast at 814 E Karsch Blvd, Farmington. Food service is 7 to 9:30 am and the cost is $8 and children under the age of 10 eat for free.

Every 3rd Sunday of each month, Post 6516 in High Ridge will host "Meat Shoot” at 2220 Gravois Rd, High Ridge. Rain or shine, shooting starts at noon. Ages 12 and up are welcome and they provide shells. Nothing smaller than a .678 choke tube and no scopes, optics, bull barrels. For mor information call (636) 677-1772.

Post 6660 and VFWA 6660 are performing an environmental cleanup project across Reynolds County to remove and properly dispose of metal, tires, and other debris from along state and county roads, creeks, and with the cooperation of the owner’s, private property.  In addition to the aesthetic value of removing such material from our forest and roadways, metal waste can leach into the soil and adjacent waterways, causing soil contamination. A lot of us rely on wells for drinking water and to water stock. These pollutants can affect groundwater. Please contact (803) 924-0608 or (573) 924-2382 if you have material to remove.

Now let us talk a bit about our history:

Although Women Veterans Day is in June, I want to recognize the history and contribution of our sisters in arms who lead the way. 

109 years ago, Loretta Perfectus Walsh became the first woman to enlist in the Navy, and the first woman to officially enlist in the U.S. military. The U.S. Naval Reserve Act of 1916 permitted the enlistment of qualified "persons” for service in the Navy and the Navy quickly began enlisting women.  Until then, women had served as Navy nurses or as civilian employees, but had few benefits. Born on 22 April 1896 in Philadelphia, Walsh was 20 years old when she enlisted as a Yeoman (F), commonly called "Yeomanettes.”  She was the first of 11,274 Yeomanettes who served during World War I.  They received the same benefits and responsibilities as men, including identical pay, and after the war, were treated as veterans.  On 21 March 1917, she was promoted to Chief Yeoman, becoming the Navy’s  first woman Chief Petty Office.  She was stationed at the Naval Shipyard in Philadelphia.  All the Yeomanettes were discharged when World War I ended. She died on 6 August 1925 of tuberculosis at the age of 29. For more information, please see visit the Naval History Foundation at https://navyhistory.org/2021/03/chief-yeoman-f-loretta-p-walsh-the-first-navy-female-chief-petty-officer .

Another group of women who led the way was the "Hello Girls.”  After arriving in France in 1917, American Expeditionary Forces (AEF) found language a major problem between the American and French armies. At first, American men and French women served together in telephone exchanges but it wasn’t effective.  Unable to find enough qualified men for the job, General Pershing, commander of the AEF requested bilingual women telephone operators be recruited. Nearly 10,000 women applied for a selection process was similar to Army officer candidates and 233 were selected. They agreed to serve for the duration of the war. They learned about the Army, wore uniforms, were assigned army ranks, and were soldiers in every way. Arriving in France in 1918, they became known as the "Hello Girls.” Extremely effective, Hello Girls became invaluable to the AEF command and control process. Unfortunately, the Army had not "officially” enlisted women during World War I and the Hello Girls were not considered servicewomen. They were not issue discharges or considered veterans. Their service was finally recognized by the 1977 G.I. Improvement Bill, only 18 of the 233 were still alive. For more information, I recommend "The Hello Girls: America's First Women Soldiers” by Elizabeth Cobbs.

Bulletin Board:

The VA one-stop telephone number is 1-800-698-2411 and press "0” for immediate assistance. The VA one stop website is VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs .

For more for information concerning VA "End of Life” benefits and services see www.va.gov/initiatives/end-of-life-benefits/

Veteran employment opportunities!  Please visit https://news.va.gov/138283/hiring-veterans-job .

The Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) one-stop Benefits and Resource Portal is (573) 522-4061 or www.veteranbenefits.mo.gov .

To pre-certify for burial in a Missouri Veterans Cemetery, apply at https://my.mo.gov/gsp?id=vcp_preapplication .  For information on burial eligibility, visit https://mvc.dps.mo.gov/cemeteries . 

The Missouri Job Center offers no-cost employment assistance for veterans and spouses. Contact (417) 257-2630 or visit jobs.mo.gov/vets.

To order military service documents such as a DD 214/Separation Document or Official Military Personnel File (OMPF), contact the National Archives, National Personnel Records Center at https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records, or call (866) 272-6272.

For more information, follow us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/967395123712841 or visit movfw.org

 

"Here to Serve”