MAY 2008
COMMANDER: Well, we made it through April, and it was a very busy month. However, we also have a number of events for May. First, we will be having the Post Officer elections on Tuesday, the 13th at 8:00 p.m. This is the FINAL NOTICE for anyone to submit his or her name to the nomination committee (Athletic Officer Jim Norton or Finance Officer Ray Steckman) if you would like to run for a particular office. You must be present at the meeting to be elected, if not you must submit a letter of intent. Be sure to attend the meeting to vote for your choice of legion members running for office for the upcoming year. The VA Country Fair is scheduled for the 14th of May. We have the Memorial Day Picnic on Sunday the 25th, the Parade in Portsmouth on the 26th. Membership is still down at 93%. There are still over 150 previous members that have not renewed this year. If you are among the 150, please stop by the Post or mail your dues ASAP to help us reach our 100% goal. Thank you. For God and Country, Byron L. Pianalto.
SECOND VICE COMMANDER: The Memorial Day Picnic will be on Sunday, May 25th from NOON until 6:00 p.m. The menu will include hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, and the usual sides. I will need volunteers to help out with set-up, serving, ticket sales, and cleanup. My phone number is (757) 773-6964. Please feel free to bring covered dishes. I hope to see all of you there. For God and Country, Mike Bukowsk
SERVICE OFFICER: Please remember I am here to assist you or any veteran in the Service Officer capacity. If you have a matter that is new to me, I will not stop researching or working until I find a resolution for you. My contact number is 757-443-2010. For God and Country, Angela Faith Ellis
AMERICAN LEGION AUXILIARY PRESIDENT: Hi Ladies! May is here. Can you believe it? Thanks to all who paid their membership dues. We are at 101%. Way to go! Reminder: If you have not yet paid you need to do so ASAP. Thanks to all who attended the Spring conference. We had 9 Unit members attend and that was Great! On May 2nd the Unit will be serving Steak for dinner. The JRS will not have a breakfast this month due to the picnic, instead, they will have a Bake sale. Ladies, we need baked good so if you can, please help them out. They are doing such a good job this year. We are proud of our JRS. Thanks go out to them for their hard work. Thanks to all who helped with the Vets Dinner. They had a very good time. I hope everyone has a good time at the Picnic and PLEASE watch out for the children playing that day. The District Meeting will be May 18th at 1:00 p.m. at Post 5 in downtown Norfolk. FINAL NOTICE – PLEASE DON’T FORGET THE ELECTIONS ON MAY 6th. For God and Country, Dawn Thomas
SQUADRON 327 COMMANDER: Greetings Comrades! We had a great time in VAB at the Spring conference. I’m proud to say that our Squadron donated $2,010.00. to CWF. We are on our way to, hopefully, getting another National Award. Guy’s this takes a lot of work, and I would like to thank the 6 or 8 members who are always there to help. We earn most of our money from Ticket Sales and Friday Night Dinners. I would like to thank Tommy Turner, Dave Samson, and Nancy Bell for the great job on our last dinner. To Tommy, I would like to say, “You’re hired.” Although we have a lot of fun working these fundraisers, with 199 members, I know all 8 of us would love to have some of you join in and do your part to help out. There is so much more to being a S.A.L. than Bowling, Dart League or Club Room privileges. WE NEED YOUR HELP! Please come out and lend a hand. I’m sure you will be surprised about what you have been missing. Jut think, IF SO FEW CAN DO SO MUCH, HOW MUCH MORE COULD WE DO IF WE ALL CAM E TOGETHER? I’m looking forward to seeing you all soon. SECOND NOTICE- Election of officers will be on Monday, 12 June. As I said, we need some new faces and ideas! All positions are open, and any member can run for any office. See any Board member to submit your name for the office you would like. Also, Legion College is coming up in August. The Squadron will pay for any member who would like to attend. Come to our Monday Night meeting and submit your name if you would like to attend. Believe me, it’s well worth the time. For God and Country, Steve Gower, Sr.
ASSOCIATION CLUB MANAGER: As most members are aware, the ABC Board is now strictly enforcing all of its rules and has started their inspections of ALL Clubs and locations with an ABC license. Our bar managers and some Board Members recently attended an RSVP course the ABC Board sponsored and now are more aware of the rules and regulations. One of the rules is that any guest of a member must come in with that member and be signed in at that time. Non-members cannot wait inside the building for their sponsor. We regret that a guest may have to wait in their car, but it IS an ABC regulation, and it is our bar manager’s responsibility to see that the rule is enforced. It is also required that you have your membership card in you possession at all times when in the Legion Hall/Clubroom. You may be asked to show your card from time to time, so PLEASE be sure to bring it with you. We are trying to stay within the limits the ABC Board sets, so please try to understand we are only doing as the law requires. When you bring a new bottle into the Club, PLEASE remember to put your first and last name on the bottle as well as the date. Labels are in the foyer, and PLEASE NO nicknames. Please refer to the calendar for dinners and entertainment, if none are listed, call the Club (587-2641) for information (sometimes info is not available in time for newsletter deadline). Ladies, we try to keep our restrooms clean, please do not throw cigarette butts on the floor. We have ashtrays for them. I hope everyone is enjoying; this warmer weather. I look forward to seeing everyone at the Memorial Day picnic!! For God and Country, Sandra Wright
HUMOR: From my email: 1. SMART ALECK ANSWER OF THE YEAR – A college teacher reminds her class of tomorrow’s final exam. “Now class, I won’t tolerate any excuses for you not being here tomorrow. I might consider a nuclear attack or a serious personal injury, illness, or a death in your immediate family, but that’s it, no other excuses whatsoever!” A smart-aleck guy in the back of the room raised his hand and asked, “What would you say if tomorrow I said I was suffering from complete and utter sexual exhaustion? The entire class is reduced to laughter and snickering. When silence is restored, the teacher smiles knowingly at the student, shakes her head and sweetly says, “Well, I guess you’d have to write with the other hand.”
EDITOR: I had the privilege of accompanying our 2nd Dist. Commander Otha Newton on Thursday, 24 April to ODU for his presentation of Post 327’s awards to two members of the Army ROTC. It was a very rewarding experience. Otha let me take all the pictures of the ceremony. Too bad more legionnaires couldn’t have been there to show support for our young men and women who are doing such a great job. Thank you to Byron, DeDee, and Sharon for helping set up the hospitality room at the Spring Conference in VAB. The Post had 14 members in attendance. FYI: I am not on the nomination committee for the election of Post officers. If you plan to run for a position, please ensure that you have been initiated and taken the oath of office. That is a requirement. Also, you might want to read the description of the position you are running for to better understand the commitment you are about to make. These duties are listed in the Post Officer’s Guide. Also, we need people to step up to the plate and handle several committees. Some of these committees need more than one person involved. If you are interested please provide your name to the commander. Please pay your dues if you haven’t done so already. The Commander is trying his best to get 100% of our goal before the end of the month. Thank you. May God bless each and every one of you with good health and happiness. For God and Country, B. J. Miller.