Local veterans groups dwindling

Membership in two Sisters veterans' organizations is declining.

The local American Legion Post is down to 18 members and Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 8138 now has 26 members -- and several veterans are members of both groups.

American Legion Vice Commander Jack Berry has launched an effort to bring other Sisters veterans into the organizations.

The Sisters posts are largely made up of World War II-era veterans and several have died in recent years.

Phil Chlopek, who was passionately committed to the local veterans' groups, died this spring, leaving the posts without their most active member.

Berry said he hopes that younger veterans will step in and provide leadership to keep the posts active.

The American Legion Post and the VFW Post jointly stage the Memorial Day ceremonies at Camp Polk Cemetery, provide honor guards in local events and look out for the health and interests of local veterans.

Berry is concerned that those activities will cease if the posts fold.

Berry encourages veterans to join "out of a sense of patriotism, to preserve what we consider traditional values --service to God, country and family."

The Sisters veteran acknowledged that Vietnam-era veterans have been less involved in the Legion and VFW than their predecessors. Part of the reason may be residual bitterness over their treatment by American civilians during the troubled war era and the perception that the veterans' organizations could have done more to defend them.

But Berry also notes that many veterans are still busy making a living and involved in other civic organizations.

He hopes they will consider becoming active in the local posts and carry on the work Sisters veterans have done.

Berry noted that it is not necessary that one be a combat veteran to join. He served on the U.S.S. Iowa during World War II. Though he went to Japan, he never engaged in combat in the Pacific theater.

The American Legion was founded by American Doughboys in Paris in 1919 after the end of World War One. The Legion posts "dedicate themselves to God and country and traditional American values; strong national security, adequate and compassionate care for veterans, their widows and orphans; community service; and the wholesome development of our nation's youth."

According to its website, "The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States traces its roots back to 1899 when veterans of the Spanish-American War (1898) and the Philippine Insurrection (1899-1902) founded local organizations to secure rights and benefits for their service.

"Many arrived home wounded or sick. There was no medical care or veterans' pension for them, and they were left to care for themselves. In their misery, some of these veterans banded together and formed organizations with what would become known as the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States."

The VFW planned the development of the Veterans Administration and has worked on memorials and compensation programs for Vietnam veterans exposed to Agent Orange.