March 6 - THE LEGION CLUB WILL HOST A POKER RUN AT THE CLUB ON SATURDAY, MARCH 6, 2010. STARTING AT 10:00 AM. THE COST WILL BE $15 A HAND. THE PROCEEDS FROM THE POKER RUN WILL GO IN SUPPORT OF OUR TROOPS AND VETERANS. BEER, SOFT DRINKS AND WATER WILL BE PURCHASED FROM THE LOUNGE. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONTACT P. J. AT (228) 467-7100, ON MONDAY’S OR WEDNESDAY’S
Feb 27 - The American Legion Ladies Auxiliary, Unit
139, will hold a “Buddy Poppy Dinner” at the legion
club on Saturday, February 27, 2010, from 5:00 PM
to 8:00 PM.
All proceeds from the dinner will go the
annual Poppy Fund, which supports our Veterans in
the VA hospitals.
Shrimp Bordelaise with spaghetti, salad & Texas
toast, and dessert. Donation of $10 per person
In 1791 the government of France passed legislation to phase out slavery in its Caribbean colonies and grant the former Negro slaves citizenship. Rather than becoming citizens, Haiti’s Negro population mass murdered all whites and Mulattoes who could not flee the Island in time.Flash forward to 1915. The “Jewel of the Caribbean” is now a desolate cesspool, that is exporting almost no sugar. The United States decides to “take up the white man’s burden” and send the US Marine Corps to rebuild Haiti’s infrastructure and feed it’s starving population.
The United States gave huge amounts of money to Haiti and over-saw the building of 1,000 miles of road, telephone lines, modernized its port, and helped Haiti to start exporting sugar once again. The US also put an end to the thousands of bandits along Haiti’s border with the Dominican Republic.
The US left in 1934 at the request of the then stabilized and very ungrateful Haitian government.
Haiti immediately sank straight back into total desolation strife.
In 1973 the United State once again began playing a huge role in Haiti, giving the Island huge sums of money in handouts each year.
In 1994 the Clinton administration once again sent the US military to Haiti to rebuild the Island’s infrastructure.
In 1995 the Peace Corps went to Haiti in large numbers to train the Haitians in job skills. The US government spent almost one Billion providing food and job training to the Haitians between 95 and 99.
So when Obama says that Haiti has our “full, unwavering, support,” they have already had our full support since 1915.
In 1804 only full blooded Negros remained and Haiti became the first Negro ruled nation. The Haitian revolution dominated America’s debate over slavery. While both the north and the south agreed that slavery should be ended, southerners and a large percentage of northerners universally opposed having a large population of freed slaves living in their midst…. The Haitian “Revolution” was fresh in every one’s mind.
In the 1700’s what is now Haiti was called the “Jewel of the Caribbean,” and supplied about 40% of the world’s sugar.
AS OF February 3, 2010
2010 Membership:
359 Members have now paid their 2010 dues.
We are now 87.77% toward our goal of 409.
Everyone is encouraged to send your 2010 dues
before December 31, 2009.
Membership year is from July 1, 2009
to
June 30, 2010.
Need 50 more!
INDIANAPOLIS (January 27, 2010) – “A great start,” was how American Legion National Commander Clarence E. Hill characterized the president’s plan to increase funding for military families to a record $8.8 billion in 2011.
“First Lady Michelle Obama said yesterday at Bolling Air Force Base that military families deserve this nation’s unending gratitude. The American Legion agrees with Mrs. Obama wholeheartedly,” said Hill. “We salute the proposed increases for counseling, support and military child care. We also recognize that in a time of war, demands on our warriors and their families will always be heavy. The White House and the Congress must continue their commitment to our military families well beyond 2011.”
In line with what the first lady said, The American Legion reaches out to active-duty, Guard and Reserve families through its Operation Military Family Outreach initiative. The OMFO is a fact-finding effort in which The American Legion meets with military families in forums and other settings, studies their quality of life issues and advocates for their needs. However, it is just one of several programs operated by the nation’s largest veterans organization.
The American Legion manages a Family Support Network, where thousands of military families received assistance last year with tasks such as lawn-mowing, grocery shopping, home repairs and other needs by calling 1-800-504-4098. The American Legion also offers Temporary Financial Assistance grants to military families with children who are in financial straits. The American Legion has raised an additional $300,000 over the last year to purchase comfort items for wounded military members recovering in hospitals and warrior transition units around the world.
American Legion officials were pleased that President Obama’s budget also includes an additional $439 million to build 10 Defense Department schools, which is part of a larger plan to replace or renovate 103 schools by 2015.
“The American Legion has been helping veterans since 1919,” said Hill. “But we have also been advocating for military spouses and their children since our founding. You cannot adequately support our warriors, if their family needs are unmet. That’s why we do what we do. We are delighted that the Obama administration seems genuinely interested in improving the quality of life for military families.”
J. C. BAXTER
RANDOLPH BOURGEOIS
DAULTON K. BUSBY
THADDEUS L. COLLIER JR.
EDWARD CONDON
BRANDON GRAFT
WESLEY HICKS
WATSON JOHNS
HAROLD D. KRANKEY JR.
JAMES A. LADNER
JIM W. LONG
GENE MONTI
DONALD E. MORAN
D. W. NORTH
WAYNE OLIVER
LUKE SCIANNA
AL SUMMY
THEODORE THOMAS
DAN WELCH SR.
One of our many goals was to reactivate our Boy Scout Troop. I am happy to report Boy Scout Troop 208 has now been reactivated. The scout committee has appointed Mike Volgal as the new Scout Master.
Now, what we need from our member is to sign up your son’s, and grand-sons.
All questions and concerns on the Scouts may be directed to Mike Volgal at (228) 342-1657.
Here’s a great letter from Sergeant Major Carpenter who is departing Iraq.
Subject: FAREWELL OF THE MARINES FROM IRAQ
A note from SgtMaj Carpenter, United States Force - West, Iraq (Previously Multi National Force - West):
SgtsMaj, MGySgts, CMDCMs, Marines and Sailors, Saturday, 23 January at 1100 will mark the end of the Marines in Iraq as an organization. II MEF (fwd) will conduct a Transfer of Authority Ceremony with the First Armored
Division without a Relief in Place from any incoming unit. USF-W (formally MNF-W) will merge with USD-C (formally MND-Baghdad) and will cease to exist.
After 6 years, over 850 Marines and Sailors killed in combat and another 8800 wounded we have completed our mission. At our peak, we had almost 26,000 Marines and Sailors on deck, close to 200 aircraft, over 380,000
pieces of ground equipment, and were averaging close to 2000 significant events a month. We have added a whole new generation of Heros; and names like Al Nasiriyah, Fallujah and Ramadi will be added to our History books.
Words can’t begin to explain the magnitude of effort and sacrifice our Marines and Sailors have gone through to help the Iraqi people. Each year since the initial invasion, Marines and Sailors from all over the Corps have
been a part of the revolving I MEF (fwd) and II MEF (Fwd) Commands.
Each year has been different with its own sets of unique challenges and each successive year, the incoming organization has built upon the successes of
the outgoing organization.
This year was no different, we didn’t have anywhere near the level of fighting that previous MEFs have done. However, we did conduct many operations, maintained security, continue to professionalize the Iraqi
Security Forces, develop good governance and economics, assisted with the continued establishment of the Rule of Law and oversaw the peaceful transition of the provincial government. We also had one unique mission that we can call our own. That was to finally bring the Marine Corps home.
Over the past year, we have simultaneously conducted the responsible drawdown of 24,000 Personnel, over 34 COPs and FOBs, including Baharia, Rawah, and TQ and sent six years worth of equipment out of theater.
For those of you who served with me this year, thank you.
It was long and difficult at times, with our own set of challenges, but we did it.
It has been an honor to serve with you.
For those of you who have left your boot prints over here at least once during the last six years; thanks to you too. You set the stage for us to finish the job. It has been costly, it has been challenging, it has taken a
while with quite a few dark days. But, in the end, it was worth it.
All Marines and Sailors, including those who remained stateside have contributed to the overall success of the Marines and Sailors in Iraq and; all of us have known someone who didn’t make it back alive or has permanent
injuries. It is up to us to ensure that those who follow never forgot their sacrifice or what we did here.
Collectively, we have added another illustrious chapter to the successful story of our Marine Corps. One that all of us can be proud of.
Semper Fidelis,
K. Carpenter
Sergeant Major
United States Force - West, Iraq
(Previously Multi National Force - West) II Marine Expeditionary Force
21 January 2010
STROKE:Remember
the
1st Three Letters….S.T.R.
My nurse friend sent this
and encouraged me to
post it and spread the
word.
I agree.
If everyone can
remember something this
simple, we could save
some folks.
Seriously..
Please read:
STROKE
IDENTIFICATION:
During a BBQ, a friend
stumbled and took a
little fall - she assured
everyone that she was
fine (they offered to call
paramedics) she said she
had just tripped over a
brick because of her new
shoes.
They got her cleaned up
and got her a new plate
of food. While she
appeared a bit shaken up,
Ingrid went about
enjoying herself the rest
of the evening
Ingrid’s husband called
later telling everyone
that his wife had been
taken to the hospital - (at
6:00 pm Ingrid passed
away.) She had suffered
a stroke at the BBQ. Had
they known how to
identify the signs of a
stroke, perhaps Ingrid
would be with us today.
Some don’t die. they end
up in a helpless, hopeless
condition instead.
It only takes a minute to
read this…
A neurologist says that if
he can get to a stroke
victim within 3 hours he
can totally reverse the
effects of a
stroke…totally. He said
the trick was getting a
stroke recognized,
diagnosed, and then
getting the patient
medically cared for within
3 hours, which is tough.
RECOGNIZING A STROKE
Thank God for the sense
to remember the ‘3′
steps, STR . Read and
Learn!
Sometimes symptoms of
a stroke are difficult to
identify. Unfortunately,
the lack of awareness
spells disaster. The
stroke victim may suffer
severe brain damage
when people nearby fail
to recognize the
symptoms of a stroke.
Now doctors say a
bystander can recognize
a stroke by asking three
simple questions:
S *Ask the individual to
SMILE.
T *Ask the person to
TALK and SPEAK A
SIMPLE SENTENCE
(Coherently)
(i.e. It is sunny out
today)
R *Ask him or her to
RAISE BOTH ARMS.
If he or she has trouble
with ANY ONE of these
tasks, call emergency
number immediately and
describe the symptoms to
the dispatcher.
New Sign of a Stroke
——– Stick out
Your Tongue
NOTE: Another ’sign’ of a
stroke is this: Ask the
person to ’stick’ out his
tongue.. If the tongue is
‘crooked’, if it goes to
one side or the other
, that
is also an indication of a
stroke.
A cardiologist says if
everyone who gets this e-
mail sends it to 10
people; you can bet that
at least one life will be
saved.
I have done my part.
would you?
