By Stephen Smoot
For many who have served in any branch of the United States military, the commitment to service does not end with an honorable discharge.
This summer, the “Our Five Boys” Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9666 in Sugar Grove exemplified that perfectly. Their commitment to community and service earned a national Community Service Award, as well as contributing mightily to designation as both an All-American and All-State post.
Says Larry Flinn, Post Commander, “we look after the veterans that need support.” That includes performing regular “buddy checks,” visiting veterans at nursing homes, giving rides to doctors’ appointments, dialysis, and much more. “If we can get it done,” said Flinn, “we help them get it done.”
D. Andrew Sockett serves as state adjutant and quartermaster for the Department of West Virginia for the Veterans of Foreign Wars. He shared that “every post within the Department of West Virginia reports everything they do to a community service project or event. This report captures how many volunteers, man hours, miles driven, and if any money was used or donated to the event.”
When the VFW’s national headquarters tallied the totals in June, “Sugar Grove had the overall largest impact on the community based on that information,” Sockett said. He added that Post 9666 racked up 6,711 volunteer hours, valued at $224,751.39. The post also donated $7,539.40, making the total value of the post’s efforts $232,290.79.
For Flinn and Post 9666, along with its supporters, awards are nice, but not the real reason for the investment of time and effort. He said much of the service boils down to “friends helping friends.”
Another major ongoing project lies in the upkeep of the community park beside the Sugar Grove Rescue Squad facility. Flinn spoke of how the post works with the Sugar Grove Lions Club to provide a venue for events and recreation, saying that “it’s scheduled quite often.” Of course, the post uses the pavilion regularly for its own events, especially veterans’ holidays and other related celebrations.
Despite the success, Flinn states, “These old guys are getting tired. We need help.” He shared that “the ones carrying the post are in their 70s and 80s.” Many are ready to “let the younger folks take over,” when they join and become active in the post. He said they recently got “a couple of newer members in their 50s.”
With the U.S. military very active in the last quarter century fighting the enemies of American freedom around the globe, a new generation could increasingly participate in and shape the future of the VFW.
The All-State and All-American designations came from membership. Flinn stated that “we were one of the few posts that did that (qualifying for both awards), but we pulled it off.”
