VFW District 8 Newsletter
Randle Tolliver, Junior Vice Commander
For veterans in crisis, the Veterans Crisis Line's number is "988” then press "1”.
Homebound veterans requiring assistance please contact any member.
Veterans experiencing or at risk for homelessness, please contact any member or the National Call Center for Homeless Veterans at (877) 424-3838.
Buddy Check! Please call or go visit elderly or homebound veterans and see how they are doing and if they need help.
Local events:
The time and place of local post meetings and events are provided on each post’s Facebook site; come join us!
On 16 March, VFW Post 2426 Auxiliary in Desloge will host a Chili Cook Off. Entries must be there by noon, and judging from 1 – 2 pm. The cost to judge is $5.00. For more information call (636) 937-5400.
On 9 and 23 March, VFW Post 6883 will be host BB gun shooting contest at 1112 Roe Street in Bonne Terre. These will start at 1:00 PM. For more information, call (573) 358-4440.
Road trip! Please attend the 8 am, 11 March Veteran’s Legislative Rally in the capitol rotunda in Jeff City to support the veteran’s community.
Legislative Activities:
Please support the "Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act” to stop veterans from losing their constitutional rights without a court ruling or due process. Today, the VA appoints fiduciaries for veterans who are unable to manage their VA benefits on their own as a result of disabilities. By policy, VA bureaucrats provide the veteran’s name to the FBI National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). This effectively, without any finding by any court the veteran is dangerous, strips them of their Constitutional right to possess and purchase a firearm. The "Veterans 2nd Amendment Protection Act "would prohibit the VA from sending information on veterans assisted by a VA fiduciary to the without a judicial ruling. No American citizen should ever lose their constitutional rights without a court ruling or due process. Please voice your opinion and call and/or write:
Senator Josh Hawley, 115 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, D.C. 20510, (202) 224-6154, www.hawley.senate.gov
Senator Eric Schmitt, 387 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, DC 20510, (202) 224-5721, www.schmitt.senate.gov
You can find your congressman/woman’s contact information @ https://www.house.gov/representa.../find-your-representative
The VFW supports the following Missouri legislation and the Missouri legislature is in session; please contact your state senator and representative to voice your support.
First, to fully fund the Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC). The MVC manages the Missouri Veterans homes, cemeteries, and other veterans programs. These are at risk!
Second, to amend the Missouri Constitution to update the Real & Personal Property Tax exemptions for all 100% service disabled veterans.
Third, to fight unaccredited companies (Claim Sharks) that prey on veterans by offering to file claims disability benefits for presumptive conditions, and charge as high as 40% for services the VFW, DAV and American Legion do for free.
Now let us talk a bit about our history:
63 years ago, Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel John H. Glenn Jr. of Ohio, a decorated World War II and Korean War combat pilot and Naval Test Pilot, became the first American to orbit the Earth. Piloting Project Mercury's Friendship 7 spacecraft, some 100,000 spectators watched on the ground nearby and millions more watching television, saw him lift off from Cape Canaveral at 9:47 am on 20 February 1962. His three orbits lasted 4 hours, 55 minutes before splashing down in the Atlantic Ocean 800 miles southeast of Bermuda.
During the first orbit, Friendship 7‘s automatic control system malfunctioned and Glenn switched to manual control and flew the craft. During Glenn’s third and last orbit, mission there were indications the spacecrafts heat shield was possibly loose. If it came off, Friendship 7 would burn up during reentry. ‘Houston” decided that the craft’s retrorockets, scheduled to be jettisoned before reentry, would be left on in order to better secure the heat shield. Less than a minute later, Friendship 7 slammed into Earth’s atmosphere. He was picked up by USS Noa (DD-841).
For more information, I recommend "The Last American Hero: The Remarkable Life of John Glenn” by Alice L. George. To share this with a younger person, I recommend "Fly High, John Glenn: The Story of an American Hero” by Kathleen Krull.
244 years ago this week, a British force of 1,900 commanded by Lieutenant General Charles Cornwallis marched toward battle with a Continental Army and militia force of approximately 4,400 soldiers commanded by Major General Nathanael Greene. The battle occurred at Guilford Courthouse near Greensboro, NC lasted a little less than two hours. Tactically it was a British victory with Cornwallis driving Greene’s forces from the field, however British losses are heavy. Cornwallis was said to say, "I never saw such fighting since God made me. The Americans fought like demons." For more information, I recommend "The war in the South: The Carolinas and Georgia in the American Revolution” by Donald Barr Chidsey.
I offer this observation on the Battle of Guilford Courthouse by British Parliamentarian Charles James Fox. He said to the House of Commons "Another such victory would ruin the British army!”
Bulletin Board:
To pre-certify for burial in a Missouri Veterans Cemetery, apply at https://my.mo.gov/gsp?id=vcp_preapplication . For information on burial eligibility, visit https://mvc.dps.mo.gov/cemeteries .
Veteran employment opportunities! Weekly, the VA post jobs announcements from employers and employment websites who want to hire veterans. If you are looking for opportunities, please visit https://news.va.gov/138283/hiring-veterans-job .
The 2025 VA Federal Benefits Guide for Veterans, Dependents, Survivors, and Caregivers Handbook is now available. It provides a listing of VA programs, with phone numbers and websites. You can pick up a copy at any VA facility or download the handbook at https://www.va.gov/opa/publications/benefits_book.asp .
Veterans can no longer use usernames / passwords to access "My HealtheVet.” To regain access, you must create a new account at www.va.gov/sign-in-changes.
The Missouri Job Center offers no-cost employment assistance for veterans and spouses. Contact (417) 257-2630 or visit jobs.mo.gov/vets.
For local VA health care info contact either the Poplar Bluff VAMC at (573) 686-4151 / www.poplarbluff.va.gov/services/index.asp or the Farmington Robert Silvey VA Outpatient Clinic at : (573) 760-136 / www.va.gov/poplar-bluff-health-care/locations/robert-silvey-department-of-veterans-affairs-outpatient-clinic/
The VA one-stop telephone number is 1-800-698-2411 and press "0” for immediate assistance. The VA one stop website is VA.gov Home | Veterans Affairs .
The Missouri Veterans Commission (MVC) one-stop Benefits and Resource Portal is (573) 522-4061 or www.veteranbenefits.mo.gov .
For more for information concerning VA "End of Life” benefits and services see www.va.gov/initiatives/end-of-life-benefits/
To order military service documents such as a DD 214/Separation Document or Official Military Personnel File (OMPF), contact the National Archives, National Personnel Records Center at https://www.archives.gov/veterans/military-service-records, or call (866) 272-6272.
For more information, follow us at https://www.facebook.com/groups/967395123712841 or visit movfw.org
"Here to Serve”
