Good Day Post #57 Member!
MESSAGE FROM THE COMMANDER:
Yes it’s that time again.
March was a very busy month for us.
We had the Easter Dinner for the town on the 12th and on the
13th we hosted a State Commanders Brunch followed by Bingo in the
afternoon. Then the following week on
the 19th there was a district picnic at Post 87 in
I would like to say thanks to all who donated food, money
and time to make the Easter Community Dinner a success. We served over 120 plates of food within 3
hours. I have heard talk around town
asking when is the next one. Well if
there is another one, we may do it in April of 2006 and make it a Community BBQ
with hot dogs and burgers.
Douglas Gorniak
Commander
POST NEWS:
Our post meeting was on 4 April and our next meeting is 2
May at
We are having a Spaghetti Dinner on April 22 and five
tickets are enclosed. The dinner is from
Tickets are on sale for the Fourth of July 50/50 raffle. Winner will be drawn at the BBQ and need not be present to win. Tickets are on sale now at $1 each or 6 for $5. They will be sold any time the Post is open (except during Bingo). Proceeds to go to the Building Fund. For those of you who live out of the area, $10 worth of the July 4th 50/50 raffle tickets are enclosed. If you are unfamiliar with a 50/50 raffle, half the proceeds collected for the raffle go to the winner and the other half goes to whatever is designated, in this case, the Building Fund. If you wish to buy them, print your name and phone number on one half of the ticket and send them with the appropriate monies back to us by 15 June. For those of you who live in the area and want tickets, stop by the Post.
If you would like to help with the Veterans/Settlers
Memorial out at the cemetery, call Doug Gorniak at 637-2240.
We are now an official collection point for the ‘Soldiers
for Soldiers' Program. This program
recycles empty inkjet cartridges and used cell phones. Each cartridge collected provides one dollar
and each cellular phone $3 for The American Legion charities. Drop off your old cell phones and empty
inkjet cartridges at the Post. For more
information, contact Yvonne Gorniak at 637-2240.
If you are interested in taking a PTSD survey, contact
Yvonne Gorniak. A volunteer of the PTSD
Alliance Organization is collecting and compiling data to objectively present
to decision-makers in Congress.
LADIES AUXILIARY:
MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT:
Dear Auxiliary Sisters,
March was a very busy month, with the Easter Dinner for the
town. It went very nice thanks to
Commander Doug and crew and the Food Bank and crew. Every one did a beautiful job. Then we had the State Commander’s Brunch,
which our Department President Paula attended.
Thanks to Lucy the food was great, everybody enjoyed it. Commander Doug presented the State Commander
with a gift. Then Lucy and I presented
President Paula with a gift. After the
Brunch, we had Bingo. The following
Wednesday, I went to the Ash Fork Development meeting and Commander Doug and I
presented check to them to cover the flag pole for the new library. The next Saturday was the District picnic in
Please plan to attend the May 2nd meeting as we will be holding elections. Come and vote for your new officers.
The State Convention is June 16-19th. If you plan on going, reservations need to be made now because rooms are filling fast. Also, you need to give me a check for $8 for registration.
Pioneer Day is May 7th. We need two Auxiliary members to carry our flags and two members to carry Lucy’s banner. We also need to know how many plan to ride on the float.
May 21st is the Post Pancake Breakfast and June 4th we will be holding a Craft Show & Bake Sale. If you wish to rent a table for your crafts ($10 per table), please call me at 637-2304.
Peggy Gasdorf
Auxiliary President
Eatin’ Goober Pie
Call them groundnuts, earthnuts, or goobers, they’re still
peanuts, and they’re amazing. A peanut
butter pie is just one of the dozens of delicious, nutritious, and surprisingly
economical uses for this nut, which is really, technically, a pea. Think of peanuts, and you’re likely to think
of George Washington Carver, the man who got serious about the peanut. Carver knew the peanut plant as one of those
plants that enrich the soil with nitrogen and ask little in return. He planted peanuts to prove that the South’s
poor soil could be improved with this cash crop. He was right, and his idea raised him from
being just another southern black man to lasting fame. Carver also demonstrated a remarkable
collection of unheard-of uses for peanuts; peanut flour, shaving soap, dyes, a coffee
substitute, imitation cheese…some 300 products.
Peanut butter was invented in 1890 by a
LETTER FROM THE EDITOR:
You may have noticed that you got this newsletter a little
later than normal. With the change of
date of the meetings, I’ve changed when I send out the newsletter. That is also why this newsletter is a bit
longer than normal. A
lot of information to get out to you.
You should now receive your newsletter by the 15th of each
month. If you haven’t received it by
then, please let me know so I can check to see what happened.
By the way, even though I put it at the end of each
newsletter, I have found out some of you have email addresses that haven’t told
me what they are. If you’d rather not
get the newsletter via email, that’s okay but if you do have an email address
and would allow me to send the newsletter to it, it would help save on postage.
And I promise not to give out your email
to anyone else. I have a way to send it
out without the other recipients seeing the other email addresses. Your privacy is my concern.
Do you read the American Legion Magazine you are sent
monthly or just toss it on some table?
You may be missing some important information. March’s issue had topics ranging from dealing
with your credit to How to Build a Safer America. You get it free with your dues so take the
time to read it. Remember, the biggest
troublemaker you’ll probably ever have to deal with watches you in the mirror
every morning! (A Cowboy’s Guide to
Life, Parting Shots, The American Legion Magazine, March 2005 issue)
The
Thanks to Bernadine Sydow for sending this information to
me. Google has implemented a new feature
wherein you can type someone's telephone number into the search bar and hit
enter and the individual name will come up with a link to Yahoo Maps and MapQuest which you can click on and then you will be given
a map to their house if it’s available.
I tried it and our name does come up but because we live off the beaten
track, the map was inaccurate. I put a
phone number of someone who lives in town and it gives their street address and
when I clicked on the mapping links, both maps were only to Ash Fork but it
didn’t even list Ash Fork on the map. I
tried the Post’s number and though it did come up with our Post, it also said
the number belonged to Post 42 but with our correct address. The maps again did not come up with exact
directions. Everyone should be aware of
this! Maybe it’s not as scary for those
of us who live in the Ash Fork area because the maps are inaccurate but it can
be scary for those who live in other cities.
I tried my sister-in-law’s phone number (she lives in
MONTHLY TRIVIA: March
Newsletter: Who designed the
This month’s question: What body part never changes size from birth
and what body parts never stop growing from birth?
ITEMS OF INTEREST (if interested in an item listed,
contact the Post for further information)
ATTORNEY'S ADVICE -- NO CHARGE Read this and make a copy for your files in case you need
to refer to it someday. Thanks to Jim
Boyd and Gerry Erman for forwarding this information
to me!
1. The next time you order checks have
only your initials (instead of first name) and last name put on them. If
someone takes
your checkbook,
they will not know if you sign your checks with just your initials or your
first name, but your bank will
know how you sign
your checks.
2. Do not sign the back of your credit
cards. Instead, put "PHOTO ID
REQUIRED".
3. When you are writing checks to pay on
your credit card accounts, DO NOT put the complete account number on the
"For"
line. Instead, just put the last four numbers. The credit card company knows the rest of the
number, and anyone who
might be handling
your check as it passes through all the check processing channels won't have access
to it.
4. Put your work phone # on your checks
instead of your home phone. If you have
a
address. If you
do not have a PO Box, use your work address.
Never have your SS# printed on your checks. You can add
it if it is
necessary. But if you have it printed, anyone can get it.
5. Place the contents of your wallet on
a photocopy machine. Do both sides of
each license, credit card, etc. You will
know
what you had in
your wallet and all of the account numbers and phone numbers to call and
cancel. Keep the photocopy in
a safe
place.
If your wallet is stolen or lost, 1) cancel your credit cards immediately. But the key is having the toll free numbers
and your card numbers handy so you know whom to call. Keep those where you can find them. 2)
File a police report immediately in the jurisdiction where your credit
cards, etc., were stolen. This proves to
credit providers you were diligent, and this is a first step toward an
investigation (if there ever is one).
3) Call the 3 national credit
reporting organizations immediately to place a fraud alert on your name and
Social Security number. The alert means
any company that checks your credit knows your information was stolen, and they
have to contact you by phone to authorize new credit.
Now, here are the numbers you always need to contact if your credit cards have
been lost or stolen:
1. Equifax:
1-800-525-6285
2. Experian
(formerly TRW): 1-888-397-3742
3. Trans
4. Social Security Administration (fraud
line): 1-800-269-0271
RAO Bulletin, 1 March 2005 contains the following
articles: VA Budget 2006 Update 01 (VA
Committee hearing); VA Budget 2006 Update 02 (VA Committee recommendations);
BRAC 2005 Update 04 (Base closure rational speculation); Keep the Promise
Update 07 (Retiree lifetime free medical care); SBP DIC Offset Update 02
(Elimination proposed in new bill); SBP Paid Up Provision Update 02 (Oct 1,
2005 effective date proposed); Close Combat Badge (New badge for non-infantry
approved); Burial Bugler Shortage (Echo Taps project to highlight shortage);
Reserve Retirement Update 04 (New bill to reduce retirement age); Vet Cemetery
for Idaho; VA Registries Update 01—see excerpt below; Employment
Restrictions - Post Service (Don't jeopardize your retirement pay); MGIB Update
08 (Education program guidelines)
RAO Bulletin Update
15 March 2005 contains the following articles: VA Budget 2006 Update 02; BRAC 2005 Update
05; VA Comp Level Inconstancies Update 01 (Comparisons by state); Military Bankruptcy Protection Update 01 (Not
approved); Veteran's Taxable Pay (What to claim); VA Handbook (How to obtain);
DFAS Web Site Change (Eff 1 APR); Legislation of
Interest Update 06 (Veteran related bills); Anheuser-Busch Theme Parks Offer
(Complimentary admission); VA Compensation Rate Tables 2005 (Eff DEC 04); Google Maps (New & user friendly); Vet
Cemetery Florida (Open for burials 2009); Reserve Mobilization Compensation Pay
(Opposed by Pentagon); OMCC
................ (Reservist child care)
RAO Bulletin Update
VA REGISTRIES UPDATE 01: Veterans should be aware that they may be
eligible to be placed on one or more of the VA Registries. The Registries are administered at VA Health
Care Systems - NOT at VA Regional Offices.
Registries are generally administered through the Office of Occupation
& Safety Hazards. The Veteran must
"REQUEST" to be placed on the respective Registry(s). The Eligibility Office should be able to
direct you to that office. The advantage
of being on a Registry is the potential for treatment(s) of legislated ailments
& diseases, under that Registry - at NO COST. Applicable medications may also be provided
at no cost. Being on an applicable
Registry and being treated for Registry ailments/ diseases could assist in a
future claim. The following registries
are maintained by the VA:
Atomic Veterans http://www.va.gov/IRAD; Agent Orange http://www.va.gov/AgentOrange
SHAD http://www.va.gov/SHAD; Gulf I http://www.va.gov/GulfI
For more info on Registries go to http://www.va.gov - then to the applicable
Registry info. [Source:
2.4 Million
Veterans Will Pay New Fee Republican majorities on the House and
Senate veterans' affairs committees have voted to impose an enrollment fee of
at least $230 a year on 2.4 million veterans -- one of every three now eligible
for Veterans Affairs Administration health care. Those targeted are in priority categories 7
and 8, meaning they are neither poor nor suffering from service-connected
disabilities. Half of the 2.4 million
used the VA health system last year. The
Bush administration proposed the enrollment fee to hold down costs. The VA
committees rejected another Bush proposal to raise co-payments on VA-filled
prescriptions for these same priority 7 and 8 veterans. The House committee, chaired by Rep. Steve
Buyer, R-Ind., voted to set the fee for priority 7
enrollees at $230, matching the enrollment fee of under-65 military retirees
using Tricare Prime, the military managed care
program. For priority 8 veterans, Buyer
proposes a sliding scale fee of $230 to $500, depending upon veteran
income. How do you feel about this? Contact your public officials now. Your voice matters! Congress, as of
VA Reaches Out to
Veterans Exposed to Mustard Agents:
WASHINGTON (March 17, 2005) - The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
today announced a national outreach campaign to locate veterans who were
exposed to mustard gas or the chemical weapon Lewisite during their
service. "Many of these veterans
have already sacrificed for their country, above and beyond the normal call of
duty,'' said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Jim Nicholson. "At VA, we will ensure they receive the
benefits and care they have earned."
Most of these veterans participated in chemical testing programs during
World War II. They were exposed to
mustard agents, which includes sulfur mustard and nitrogen mustard, and
Lewisite, which is a blister-producing chemical that contains organic
arsenic. VA launched an awareness
campaign in 1993 about benefits for veterans exposed to chemical warfare
materials. This new effort includes
direct mailings to veterans newly identified by the Department of Defense (DoD). Most of these "mustard gas
veterans" took part in DoD
tests during World War II. The tests
were designed to evaluate clothing, ointments and equipment that would protect
American troops from mustard agent attacks.
As part of those tests, DoD
reported some participants were exposed to a drop of a chemical-warfare agent
on an arm, while others had full-body exposure in test chambers, sometimes with
limited protective clothing. According
to DoD, approximately 4,500
service members were exposed to these agents.
VA is mailing information to the veterans and survivors within the first
group of participants identified by DoD. The information covers VA medical and
financial benefits, data about the effects of exposure to chemical warfare
agents, and telephone numbers for VA and DoD
offices involved in the outreach campaign. VA is continuing to seek
addresses for additional veterans and survivors. VA invites veterans to file disability
compensation claims for any condition related to service, including exposure to
mustard agents and Lewisite. Veterans or
their survivors with questions about these benefits should contact VA at
1-800-749-8387 or visit VA's benefits Web site at www.vba.va.gov. [Source:
VA News Release,
DFAS changes web sites: Members of the military retiree, whether they
routinely use myPay or peruse the Defense Finance and
Accounting Service (DFAS) web page only occasionally, should note a new DFAS
web address. Users are now greeted with
the message that www.dfas.mil
moving to www.dod.mil/dfas as of March 1, 2005. Those individuals who are linking to or are
looking for current information should link to or go to www.dod.mil/dfas. Users who visit www.dfas.mil
as of
Bills to allow pre-tax insurance payments introduced: Senator John Warner (R-VA) and Congressman Tom Davis (R-VA) have
reintroduced their bills (S.484 and H.R. 994, respectively) that would allow
certain insurance premiums to be paid with pre-tax dollars. The bills would affect active and retired
service members and survivors who pay Tricare Prime
enrollment fees, Tricare Standard supplement
insurance premiums and Tricare dental premiums. The bills would also allow federal retirees
to pay Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan (FEHBP) premiums with pre-tax
dollars. This "premium
conversion" plan deducts premiums from paychecks before federal and state
income taxes are calculated. This saves
the beneficiary anywhere from 25 to 40 percent of the premium cost in taxes,
according to calculations by the Military Officers Association of America. This benefit has been extended to current
Federal employees who participate in FEHBP since 2000 and is already available
to employees of the vast majority of large private sector firms. [Source: AF Retiree News, 5 Mar 05]
Two Scams Target Military Families: Scam Targets Families of KIAs. Officials
with the Department of Homeland Security are warning the public about an
Iraq-related Internet scam directed at the relatives of fallen
The Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) is developing a nationwide registry of living
veterans who have Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). The goal of this
registry is to identify all veterans with ALS and collect data, including DNA
samples, for use in studies that examine the causes and treatment of ALS. In
addition, the registry will provide a way for the VA to inform veterans with
ALS about clinical trials for which they may be eligible. All veterans who have
been diagnosed with ALS, or their friends or family members, are encouraged
call 1-877-DIAL-ALS (1-877-342-5257) for more information. More information
about the registry can also be found at the following Web site: http://www.va.gov/durham/alsregistry.asp
[Source: Military.com, Veteran’s Report,
The
UPCOMING EVENTS TO PUT ON YOUR CALENDAR: (all events at Post 57 unless otherwise
noted.)
8-9 April 2005 (Fri-Sat), Post
Social,
22-23 April 2005 (Fri-Sat), Post
Social,
6-7 May 2005 (Fri-Sat), Post Social,
8 May 2005 (Sun), Bingo, doors open
15 May 2005 (Sun), District Meeting,
21 May 2005 (Sat), Pancake Breakfast,
22 May 2005 (Sun), Bingo, doors open
30 May 2005 (Mon), Memorial Day
Ceremony at Ash Fork “Settlers” Cemetery, 10 am
If you have an article or piece of information that you
think would be of interest to the whole Post, let me know and I will include it
in the first newsletter after receiving the information. You can get me the information by emailing me,
dropping it off at the Post or mailing it to the Post at
Do you have an email address? Have you sent it to me? If not, please do so. My email address is rockin_g@netzero.com. Make sure you let me know who you are when you send me the email so I know whom the email address belongs to.
Yvonne Gorniak
Yvonne
Gorniak
Editor
Post 57