- The monthly VVA chapter 1069 meeting was held in the big banquet room at Mikeska's BBQ (located on Hwy 59), in El Campo, TX.
-
VVA Chapter 1069 President, Leonard Sternadel (see photo below), declared the meeting open at 1900 hours and the following
business was transacted.
- The Pledge of Allegiance to the flag was recited and a prayer was said.
-
Sternadel then introduced Robert Glaze and Michael Harbaugh as new members. He also recognized Dennis Jetton as a prospective member.
Welcome Home Robert!
Welcome Home Michael!
Welcome Home Dennis! - The meeting was then recessed for the meal and reconvened at 1945. The minutes of the last meeting were approved as presented.
-
The chapter's Veterans Service Officer (VSO), Dwight Winkler (see photo below), gave a short presentation on veterans
benefits, AND also provided the entertainment for the evening with stories of Jimmy Neumann and Frank Kulcak - moral of
the stories Dwight told ... (1) never stand too close to the edge of a pond, and (2) buy your mother eye glasses rather
than a parrot. You had to be there.
Winkler also thanked Leonard and Dana for providing another great family outing at their pond. He then passed out a couple of
handouts and gave a short presentation on Veteran related benefits. The chapter would again like to thank Dwight for his
diligence to the cause of helping all of us veterans.
The list below shows the content topics of the two handout sheets.
Use the two links below to either View or Print Dwight's handouts (PDF documents) for this meeting.
Page-1
(1) CONTACT INFO
(2) VA INQUIRY ROUTING & INFORMATION SYSTEM (IRIS)
(3) 24/7 VETERANS CRISIS LINE (VCL)
(4) VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM PRIORITIES GROUPS
(5) POTPOURRI OF INFORMATION
Page-2
(6) OTHER DISCOUNTS FOR SENIOR CITIZENS
(7) NOTICE OF APPRAISED VALUE NOT TAX STATEMENT
(8) YOUR VOICE COUNTS
- The following topics were also covered in the meeting:
- The annual catfish fishing & fish fry event will be held at the Sternadel's pond on Saturday, May 14th. About 50 members have signed up to attend the event. Update: The Fishing event was held as scheduled and was a huge success. About 45 members attended and all had a fun time catching and eating fresh catfish! A full report with pictures will be forthcoming shortly on this website.
-
The membership Stand-Down will be held at FB Helen on Saturday, June 11. All members are invited to attend for a fun time
and some really great food. This is a great opportunity to meet with your fellow chapter members and relax a bit.
Update: The Stand-Down was held as scheduled and was a big success. About 25 members attended and all had a good time and
good eats! And some nice bass were caught out of the big lake (see photo above).
Frankie L. - You missed out!
In all, a great afternoon of fun camaraderie with fellow Vietnam veterans. And of course, the chapter would like to
thank our local Veterans supporter for inviting us to spend the afternoon at his lake retreat and for being a great
friend of VVA Chapter 1069.
- Sternadel informed the group that he attended a recent conference held by Congressman Blake Farenthold. He stated they discussed the possibility of privatizing the VA, border security, IRS, problems with the Choice Card bonuses for federal employees. Also mentioned was an upcoming Veterans Benefits Summit that was to be sponsored by the Congressman. The event would be held in Victoria on July 23rd and our membership was encouraged to attend. Update: The Veterans Benefits Summit was held as scheduled in Victoria. Several members from the chapter, including Leonard & Dana Sternadel attended the event and all helped setup our chapter's booth/display at the event. Our booth was next to the Victoria VVA chapter 898's group which turned out to be a great opportunity to exchange information between the two chapters. Leonard would like to thank all those members that attended the event and helped man the booth throughout the day. A full report on the event, with pictures, will be forthcoming shortly on this website.
- Sternadel also informed the group that the bylaws are being updated. The draft will be presented to the Board of Directors for review and then brought to the full membership for approval or other considerations.
- Sternadel also thanked all those chapter members who attended the Memorial Day Program that was held in Ganado on May 30th. The event was sponsored by the Ganado American Legion, Post #346. Leonard was the guest speaker for the event and the Post leadership offered a special invitation to our membership to attend the program. Leonard presented a very memorable talk about a local Ganado WW-II veteran, Mr. Malcik, who was unfortunately part of the Batan Death March. Mr. Malcik was the next door neighbor to Leonard when he grew up in Ganado, and so was very good friends with Mr. Malcik and his family. Those who attended the program will not soon forget the words that Leonard spoke that day about Mr. Malcik. The program was held at the Legion Post facility in Ganado. After the program, all gathered outside for a fly-over by two local pilots. A full-course breakfast was then provided for all those who attended. In all, the Ganado American Legion did a great job with the program, and Leonard would encourage more of our members to attend next year. Update: A full report regarding the Memorial Day program held in Ganado will be forthcoming shortly on this website.
- Chapter member, Mark Pilcik told the membership that a Memorial Service at Holy Cross Cemetary was also held in East Bernard on May 30th. He said that the East Bernard American Legion participated in the program and that around 100-125 people attended the program.
- Sternadel then stated he would like to see about getting a group together to visit the Angel Fire Vietnam War Memorial, located in New Mexico. There will be more information & discussion about this at a later date. If you would be interested in going on group trip to visit the monument, please be thinking about it and let Leonard know at the next chapter meeting. And maybe some of you have already visited the monument - if so, please come to the next meeting and tell us about your trip. Use the link below to visit the Angel Fire Memorial website to learn more about it. CLICK HERE to visit the Angel Fire Memorial Website
- Our VSO, Dwight Winkler then added that he had three resolutions that could be signed in support of NOT privatizing the VA.
- There being no further business, President Sternadel declared the meeting adjourned at 2045. Much thanks to our chapter Secretary, John Steelman for providing the contents of this report.