Brrrr – yep, winter has made its arrival, and it is cold! I do hope that everyone is taking appropriate measures and that you all are being safe in this weather.
Moving on, January is the month where the American Legion, the Fleet Reserve Association, and the VFW come together to plan the Armed Forces Day Celebration that will be held May 18. Already I have heard there are a couple of other activities planned that day, like high school graduation. But no worries, the AFDC will be from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and I understand that graduation will start at 7 p.m.
But moving on, this year the celebration has more participants! So a larger event is being planned, and we’re looking for a much larger turnout this year. Last year, 65 people came and two veterans were able to visit with representatives who were available, and they resolved issues that had been ongoing. A couple more were able to get headway made on their situations.
This year, the idea was floated to have a veterans wall; nothing really permanent, but a wall of all vets from and living in Texas County, with the one county veteran who was a survivor of the USS Indianapolis being showcased. With the interest of recognizing Mr. Douglas with a memorial, it seems appropriate that a display is set up this year highlighting the tragedy of the attack and sinking of the ship.
This year, the celebration – which is to be a county-wide event – will be held at the Houston Area Chamber of Commerce fairgrounds. Everyone is invited to attend. Since the workload of planning is spread out over several people unlike last year, I’m not entirely sure of the program. But I will provide updates each month.
Should anyone reading this be interested in joining the planning, stop in at the Legion building next to Pizza Hut any Thursday at 9 a.m. There is always coffee and pastries.
Monthly meetings are the second Thursday of each month at 5:30 p.m. and are open to the public. If you have any questions, contact me through my email.
And stay safe and warm. Don’t be out in the weather if it’s not needed.
Houston resident Keith Ford is a retired infantryman and an amateur writer whose work has appeared in publications around the world. Email kf4tap@yahoo.com.
