The Graybeards - KWVA - Korean War Veterans Association

From the President
Louis T. Dechert
PERPETUATING - REMEMBERING - MAINTAINING
Veterans, Members and Friends,
On April 28, 2006, we posted a feature
on www.kwva.org which asserted
that Honor Never Sleeps. The same
basic feature appeared in the May-June
2006 Graybeards, pages 25-26. Both
articles stressed the mission necessity
of caring for the National Memorial for
which the KWVA raised the largest single
block of funding to build.
This issue of The Graybeards is a
continuation of the introductions in the
May-June Issue and on the website.
Elsewhere you will find an expression
of the need from Colonel Bill Weber,
Executive Director of the Memorial
Foundation. Also in this issue is the
Challenge Scorecard, which is correct
as of the day the magazine went to
press. The Challenge Scorecard will be
displayed on the website and updated as
frequently as necessary.
Elsewhere in the issue is a “how to
do it” story* of Chapter 142, Frederick,
Maryland, which challenged all KWVA
Chapters to pledge to raise and donate
significant money to support the
National Memorial. Chapter 142 is not
*All Chapters are invited to share fundraising
strategies that worked in meeting the
MEMORIAL CHALLENGE. Write them up and
send them to Art Sharp, Editor, The
Graybeards.
THE MISSION OF THE KWVA/USA
DEFEND our Nation
CARE for our Veterans
PERPETUATE our Legacy
REMEMBER our Missing and Fallen
MAINTAIN our Memorial
SUPPORT a free Korea
just talking the talk; they have done the
walk, and are still doing so.
A little over a year ago Chapter 142
donated $2000 to the Memorial
Foundation, but this was just a token of
what was needed. Realizing it would
take more than a single Chapter to support
this endeavor, they decided to challenge
the rest of the Chapters to meet or
exceed their donation of $2000 per year
for a total of $10,000. In just fifteen
months, using the Rose Of Sharon and
small American flags, they reached
their pledge. As depicted on the cover
of this Greybeards, they donated the
remaining $8000 to the Korean War
Veterans Memorial Fund, at the monument
on July 24 this year—five years’
work done in a fifteen months!!
On July 24, 2006, some fifteen
months after pledging to raise $2,000 a
year until their $10,000 Memorial
Challenge pledge was made, Chapter
142 met in Washington, D.C. at the
Memorial and presented the balance of
their first $10,000
in full, a check for
$8,000. In less than two years their
pledge was raised by the chapter, most
of it through numerous Rose of Sharon
sales at parks, parades, carnivals, picnics
and numerous other places, again,
and again, and again.
I especially challenge every
National, Department and Chapter
leader, and all of our other members, to
read the articles and accept the
Memorial Challenge. That is showing
results, as this email I received a while
back attests.
From: Vettiem@aol.com
To: louisdechert@cox.net
Sent: Saturday, June 03, 2006 7:59 PM
Subject: FYI
Gentlemen:
As requested in President Dechert’s
“Perpetuating - Remembering -
Maintaining” letter, this is to report that
the Cpl Clair Goodblood (MOH) Chapter
79 has run a Rose of Sharon sale and
sent a check for the proceeds, $296.00,
to the KWVMFnd.
Regards,
Philip W. Tiemann Jr., Chapter
Commander
I hope to see more contributions
such as the ones outlined above.
ATTENTION ALL MEMBERS
The mailing address for sending/requesting
information
relative to membership in the
KWVA is:
Nancy Monson
Recording Secretary
PO Box 101238
Arlington, VA 22210-4238
Email:
kwvamembership@verizon.net
Membership Number
First two characters reflect
membership type
Check Your Mailing Label
Membership Dues Expiration Date. The example
shows a dues date of January 1st, 2007
*************************************************5 Digit
R012345 01/01/07
JOHN J. JOHN
12345 MAIN ST
SMILEY NY 01234-5678
DELIVERY POINT BARCODE
Check your name and address ( Apt./Bldg/Lot No.). Notify the Membership
Chairman if you find an error. If your zip code does not contain 9 digits
(zip+4), your address is not correct according to the USPS. Contact your local
Post Office for proper format.
Important: If
barcode does not
extend across
full label, your
zip code does
not have 9 digits
and your address
is not correct
according to the
USPS. Contact
your local Post
Office for proper
format.
3
The Graybeards September – October 2006