Post Talk
NORTH BRANCH POST # 85
By Glenn Pierce, Adjutant
Meeting Schedule:
Bar Finance & Accounting August 5th at 3:30 pm
Membership Meeting August 13th at 7:00 pm
SAL Meeting August 20th at 6:00 pm
Michelle Still, Auxiliary President – First, I want to thank everyone for their support for our Relay for Life Team. The event is on Aug. 3rd and I’m looking forward to attending again. ALL post family members are invited to the 10th District Family Picnic on August 17th starting at noon. There will be games and surprises. This is potluck so please bring a dish to share. We will serve hot dogs and the eating utensils will be provided. We will meet at Central Park unless the weather is bad, in that case we will meet at the Legion Hall. I hope many from our Post will be there to meet our district president, Brandi Christensen, district commander, Tom Allen, and many other Tenth District friends. Let’s welcome them to North Branch and show our support for their service.
Randy Koivisto, 1st Vice Commander, Membership Director – Need to get rolling? We have two wheelchairs to loan out if needed. One is a conventional chair, the other one has four of the smaller wheels intended for indoor use only. There is no charge for the use of the chairs.
Orville Otterness, Post Service Officer – I attended the July meeting the County Veterans Service Officer had at the Legion Hall. We heard speakers on the subjects of Home Health Service and Hospice. It was a very informative meeting and I would encourage all veterans to attend these meetings if you are able to get there. They are held the third Tuesday of the month so the next one will be held August 20. We had a good attendance with about 30 there, veterans and some wives. A speaker from Adara Home Health informed us we can get Home Health Service at home for the amount of time needed and if authorized by your doctor. Payment can be from insurance or Medicare. Check with your doctor and/or the CVSO. The second speaker was from St. Croix Hospice. This service is available to any patient who is experiencing a life limiting disease with a six-month or less prognosis. The benefit will continue as long as the patient needs it and if the patient graduates off hospice service at any time they are still entitled to receive the benefit again at a later time if it is needed.
Glenn Pierce, Adjutant – Congress and the White House agree to expand definition of war eras to include all who served since Dec. 7, 1941. More than 1,600 members of the U.S. Armed Forces were killed or wounded in periods of time not designated as war eras since the end of World War II. The newly signed Let Everyone Get Involved in Opportunities for National Service Act of 2019 – The LEGION Act – honors those veterans, their spouses and descendants, extending membership eligibility in The American Legion Family to hundreds of thousands who had previously been excluded. The LEGION Act offers American Legion membership eligibility to any U.S. military veteran who served at least one day of active military duty since Dec. 7, 1941, and was honorably discharged or is serving now. The act also affects membership in the American Legion Auxiliary and Sons of the American Legion, expanding eligibility for those groups, as well.