by Jill Funke

For the past few weeks, the American Legion Post 561 Larchwood has been in the process of moving to the old Security Savings Bank building at the corner of Main and Holder. After the bank built its new building, bank officials gave the old building to the city. The city gave the back portion to the Legion, and kept the front portion for city of Larchwood offices and community room.

In June, many Legion and non-Legion members volunteered to remove walls and doors from the office area of the building. After that, a number of improvements were made including painting, trim work and the installation of kitchen cupboards. The last phase of the remodeling is the new flooring. Metzger Construction agreed to donate the labor necessary to install ceramic tile in the building. Following all of these remodeling efforts, members are hoping to complete their physical move by October. Legion member and Finance Officer Vince Gacke will collect donations from anyone who would like to contribute to the moving and remodeling costs or the Legion letter signage on the front door of the building. As for the Veterans Memorial in front of the old Legion building, it will remain at its current location for the present time.

The new building will be greatly appreciated for Legion functions and meetings. Each month, members gather to discuss their local business, and get information about Legion news on the state and national levels. Some of their projects include sponsoring Boys State, putting on all area military funerals, raising the American flag at the high school football games, and putting up the Avenue of Flags at the Larchwood cemetery on Memorial Day each year.

To raise the money necessary to support their projects, the Legion holds an annual breakfast the last Sunday in October. This year, members are waiting for the breakfast with increased anticipation as they plan to utilize their new pancake grill. Using the Emil Bjork memorial funds of approximately $600, and other donations including $100 from Jack Bontje, Legion members ordered the grill and made plans to pick it up in late September. In addition to the Legion’s pancake breakfast, the grill will also be offered for use by other organizations and churches.

Locally, statewide and nationally, the American Legion has been making a difference since the early 1900s. In 1919, the American Legion was chartered by Congress as a patriotic, mutual-help, war-time organization for veterans. One of the first official projects of this organization was to pass a resolution in support of the Boy Scouts of America. All across the country, the Legion is the chartering agency for more than 1,700 scout troops that involve over 64,000 youth. Still taking an active interest in positive youth development, in 1925, the American Legion Baseball program was created. This program has had such long term effects on the nation that today, more than 60% of professional baseball players are graduates of the American Legion Baseball program.

In addition to programs for the benefit of youth, the American Legion also supported other worthy causes such as the American Heart Association, and was the largest single contributor to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund, helping construct "The Wall" in Washington, D.C. Responding to reports of families struggling while a father or mother was serving the nation during Operation Desert Shield/Desert Storm in the Middle East, the American Legion formed the "Family Support Network". This program helped families in a variety of ways, including financial assistance, lawn mowing, and baby-sitting, as well as Legion members lending a sympathetic ear during difficult times. This program continues to help the veterans of the country’s current conflicts as they return home and re-enter civilian life.

All over the world, three million men and women are members of almost 15,000 American Legion Posts. Posts are organized in each of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, France, Mexico and the Philippines. Members feel that by belonging to the Legion, they are able to connect with others who share similar experiences. The members of American Legion Post 561 Larchwood appreciate the organization as it provides them with a way to make a difference in their community.