VFW Post 2667

Come join us Saturday, May 3rd at Noon! as VFW Post 2667 presents a Membership Drive & Low Country/Crawfish Boil simmered to delectable goodness $10 - All You Can Eat (or till we run out) New VFW Members Eat Free! (You must sign-up and pay that day)

On Wednesday, April 23rd, the Senate approved legislation to rename several U.S. Post Offices in Georgia in honor of fallen soldiers. The U.S. Post Office located at 3035 Stone Mountain Street in Lithonia, GA, will be renamed the “Specialist Jamaal RaShard Addison Post Office Building.” The U.S. Post Office located at 5815 McLeod Street in Lula, GA, will be renamed the “Private Johnathon Millican Lula Post Office.” The U.S. Post Office located at 116 Helen Highway in Cleveland, GA, will be renamed the “Sgt. Jason Harkins Post Office Building.” These men served without desire for credit, but on behalf of their country and everything positive that we stand for. Naming these post offices after them is one small way to honor the sacrifices they made to make the United States and Georgia a better place. Learn more about these brave men .

The Veterans Benefits Enhancement Act of 2007 is a comprehensive bill providing benefits to veterans, their families and their survivors. Provisions of the bill include expanding eligibility for traumatic injury insurance, increasing benefits for veterans pursuing apprenticeships or on-job training programs and expanding eligibility for specially adapted housing assistance. The bill also provides an automatic annual increase in burial benefits (based on inflation) for the families of veterans. Watch the status of this bill at www.opencongress.org/bill/110-s1315/show

WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Jim Inhofe (R-OK) praised the passage by unanimous consent of his bill (S.1877) clarifying U.S. law to allow veterans and servicemen not in uniform to salute the flag. Current law (US Code Title 4, Chapter 1) states that veterans and servicemen not in uniform should place their hand over their heart without clarifying whether they can or should salute the flag. "The salute is a form of honor and respect, representing pride in one's military service," Senator Inhofe said. "Veterans and service members continue representing the military services even when not in uniform. "Unfortunately, current U.S. law leaves confusion as to whether veterans and service members out of uniform can or should salute the flag. My legislation will clarify this regulation, allowing veterans and servicemen alike to salute the flag, whether they are in uniform or not. "I look forward to seeing those who have served saluting proudly at baseball games, pa...

Under a brilliant blue sky Monday afternoon, a gathering of trustees, donors, fans, politicians and veterans officially broke ground for a major expansion of the National World War II Museum on Andrew Higgins Drive, across the street from the original location. The 2-square-block site, decked out in red, white and blue balloons, held about 200 seats for guests, along with a World War II Jeep, a PT boat, a half-track and a Sherman tank. A flyover by four F-17 planes in formation kicked off the ceremony, which included music by a U.S. Navy band, a trooping of colors by the Washington Artillery and a burst of confetti. Set to be completed by 2015, the $300 million expansion will include a campus of six new buildings covering 5.7 acres bounded by Magazine Street, Andrew Higgins Drive, Calliope Street and the Camp Street down-ramp of the Crescent City Connection. The ambitious expansion will quadruple the size of the original museum, which opened in 2000. http://blog.nola.com/el...

Family and friends of servicemen and women who died or vanished in the Vietnam War no longer have to travel to Washington to pay their respects at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. An interactive version debuted online this week, a project of historical document archive site Footnote.com in conjunction with the National Archives and Records Administration. The virtual version of the famous memorial -- which is a pair of 246-foot black granite walls inscribed with the names of more than 58,000 American military casualties -- is searchable. Every name etched onto the real-world wall is viewable online and linked to the veteran's service record. Online visitors can add photos and describe their memories of the servicemen and women who died in the war. For more of this article: News.Yahoo.com . To see the virtual Vietnam Veterans Memorial: Go.Footnote.com/thewall .

All Americans are urged to join the nation in a moment of national reflection April 9 in remembrance of the 5th anniversary Iraqi Liberation Day and the fall of Baghdad to celebrate the hope given to the Iraqi people because of the courageous actions of U.S. and multinational forces. At 5 p.m. EDS -- as the sun sets across Arlington National Cemetery-- Americans are urged to honk their car horns to celebrate, honor and recognize the courageous actions of U.S. and multinational forces in giving hope to the Iraqi people. The National Remembrance Ceremony will culminate with a joint U.S-Iraqi wreath–laying ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery honoring those who have made the ultimate sacrifice, as well as salute our troops, our veterans and our military families. The national remembrance moment is being initiated by “ Families United for Our Troops and Their Mission ," a not-for-profit 501(c)3 grassroots coalition of Gold Star and Blue Star families, veterans and Americans, who...

The 11th Biennial Reunion of the 1st Brigade (Separate) 101st Airborne Division will be in Hampton, Virginia, September 25-28, 2008. All members of assigned and attached units, who served between July 1965 and January 1968 are welcome. For more detailed information, contact Ivan Worrell at firstbrigades101magazine@yahoo.com or visit www.FirstScreamingEagles.org .

The Third Infantry Division Society and attached units in wars and in peacetime will hold their 89th reunion September 18-21, 2008. The reunion will be held at the Sheraton Hotel Four Points in Columbus, Georgia. For more information, visit www.3rdiv.org . The Society of the Third Infantry Division is also seeking those who served in the 3rd and attached units in wars, peacetime, or special interest to join the Society. For more information, visit www.3rdiv.org .

For all those of you who don't remember, we're having breakfast at the Post tomorrow morning at 09:00 with a meeting to follow. We'll have a guest speaker, Miss Casey McCully, the Post and District Voice of Democracy winner. Hope to see you there.

Did you know that you can order an engraved paper Presidential Memorial Certificate, signed by the current President, to honor the memory of honorably discharged deceased veterans? The program was started in 1962 by President John F. Kennedy and has continued ever since. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) administers the PMC program by preparing the certificates which bear the current President's signature expressing the country's grateful recognition of the veteran's service in the United States Armed Forces. Eligible recipients include the next of kin and loved ones of honorably discharged deceased veterans. More than one certificate may be provided. Eligible recipients, or someone acting on their behalf, may apply for a PMC in person at any VA regional office or by U.S. mail or toll-free fax. Requests cannot be sent via email. Please be sure to enclose a copy of the veteran's discharge and death certificate to verify eligibility, as they cannot process any reque...

"Earl Kisler remembers the screams of shipmates in the interrogation room near Pyongyang -- and his own painful turns inside. He cannot forget, after all these years, the pain unique to each of the blunt instruments his North Korean captors used on him." USS Pueblo Survivor's Story - The Oregonian : This is a "printer-friendly" page so just cancel the print dialog box. Thanks, Red.

The District 4 meeting scheduled for tomorrow, January 20th, has been postponed due to inclimate weather. We'll post the new date here once we have it.

The 2008 Newnan-Coweta Citizen of the Year is retired U.S. Air Force Brigadier General Robin G. Tornow, who also recently retired as director of the University of West Georgia's Newnan Center. "This is truly an honor. Truly an honor," Tornow told a gathering at the Coweta County Fairgrounds Thursday night. Newnan Times-Herald - Citizen of the Year

The Post met for an excellent breakfast and better comradarie this morning at the Coweta Veterans Club. The turn-out was great. After breakfast it was decided to alter the Post meeting schedule to incorporate more of these breakfast meetings. The membership decided to alter the Post meeting schedule on a trial basis to include more Saturday morning breakfasts. Starting immediately, every other meeting will be a Saturday breakfast meeting. The opposite meetings will continue to be our normal, Thursday evening meetings. The next meeting will be February 14th at 7:30p with fellowship and dinner starting at 6:30p. The March meeting will be on March 8th at 9:00a with breakfast and a meeting. Hope to see you there.

With thoughts turning from tasty Thanksgiving turkey to holiday shopping lists, one national bookseller has made it easy to find the perfect gift for everyone, including the nation's servicemembers. Barnes & Noble, a corporate supporter of the Defense Department's "America Supports You" program, has created an online book store that benefits troop-support organizations with a 5 percent donation from each sale made through the www.bn.com/asy Web site. America Supports You is a Defense Department program connecting citizens and corporations with military personnel and their families serving at home and abroad.  http://www.americasupportsyou.mil/americasupportsyou/Content.aspx?ID=44943546

COLORADO SPRINGS - Air Force Major John Carroll was finally reunited with is wife Beverly on Tuesday.  At the age of 32, Carroll was shot down over Laos in 1972 during his service in Vietnam. Despite eyewitness accounts of him suffering a fatal wound, he was listed as Missing In Action for decades.  During that time Beverly Carroll died of cancer and was buried at the Air Force Academy's cemetery. On Tuesday, her husband was buried next to her.  "This is where he wanted to be, this is where she wanted to be and they're now together," said Carroll's mother Mary Hancock. Hancock says her daughter-in-law wanted to be buried at the Academy's cemetery in hopes that one day her husband could be laid to rest beside her. That recently became possible after the U.S. military recovered and identified Carroll's remains near the crash site. In Carroll's case, the remains were two teeth.  See full story at http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=8090...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 16, 2007 – For those seeking a quick way to show appreciation for the troops' service far from home this holiday season, look no further than “Giving Thanks,” a new initiative from the Defense Department’s America Supports You program. America Supports You connects citizens and corporations with military personnel and their families serving at home and abroad. "This is a simple way to connect our citizens to our soldiers using modern technology," Allison Barber, deputy assistant secretary of defense for internal communications and public liaison, said of the text messaging program. DefenseLink News Article: America Supports You: Americans Can Text ‘Thanks’ to Troops

World War II veteran Wendell Whitlock says he is honored to have been selected as Coweta County's 2007 Veteran of the Year, but insists he is no more deserving than other local veterans. "This is the greatest honor I have ever received," Whitlock says. "And I am as grateful as anyone can be. But there are others who did much more than me. As far as I'm concerned anybody who served deserves this honor. But I'm very proud and humble to accept and hope I've done some good for some people over the years." The Veteran of the Year honor is presented to veterans who've distinguished themselves not just in the military but in their contributions to the community, state and nation, according to Dick Stender, Commander of American Legion Post 57, which sponsors the award. The ceremonies begin at 11:00a today at the Newnan city park at Jackson Street and Temple Avenue. "I don't know if people realize how much Wendell has done to help this county, b...

"Many Americans think of the Constitution as words on paper preserved under glass at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. But the Constitution is also the product of an ongoing conversation among Americans about the meaning of freedom in their daily lives. ...For the Constitution to have meaning, it must be not only the words we recite, but also the words we live by." The Words We Live By , Linda R. Monk  September 17 is Constitution Day 2007. Take the opportunity to learn more about our Constitution. Some websites with information: OPM has a set of references in commemoration of U.S. Constitution and Citizenship Day at www.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/ The National Constitution Center in Philadelphia provides information about the Constitution www.ConstitutionCenter.org This Department of Defense website includes a multimedia presentation that is available to everyone ConstitutionDay.cpms.osd.mil

Commemorates the 6th anniversary of 9/11 attacks - to remember those who lost their lives and to honor firefighters, police and soldiers of our nation who protect our freedom every day. Events are being planned with guidance from the America Supports You, www.AmericaSupportsYou.com . Newnan walk begins with a 6:30 p.m. Gathering at gazebo in the Newnan city park at Jackson Street and Temple Avenue and ends at Court Square. Sister walks will also be held Sept. 8-11 in Washington, D.C., and all over the nation. Details: Susan Shaner at 770-845-2254 or 770-251-3987 or sshaner@numail.org.

We have the order form online. Click here to display and print it.

Brick for the Veterans Memorial Plaza are selling. Now members of the Veterans Memorial Plaza committee are looking for ways to pick up the pace. The committee is looking for ways to reach out and meet people face-to-face in order to maximize the effort. The group will be taking orders for bricks at the next Market Day in downtown Newnan, at the Powers' Crossroads Country Fair and Arts Festival on Labor Day weekend, and at the Coweta County Fair in September. Read more at Newnan Times-Herald