Officers and Board of DirectorsPresident Greg Paulline 650-3055 Dir. Mike DeGeeter 391-8427Vice-President Marlene Marolf 391-9621 Dir. Ed Gaudet 659-5421

Treasurer Harold Hansen 391-7776 Dir. Ed Gilmore 792-2415Secretary John Lavelle 355-4213 Dir. Art Heyderman 359-4186Web Master Roger Granbois 650-4958 Dir. Larry Witt 388-7179

“ I N S E R V I C E T O A M E R I C A . ”

THE SPIRIT OF ‘776S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 0 N E W S L E T T E R

V I E T N A M V E T E R A N S O F A M E R I C A C H A P T E R 7 7 6

NEXT MEETINGSeptember 22, 2010Bettendorf Public

Library7:00 P.M.

Service Officers

Clarke Barnes309 944-3674Ed Gaudet563 343-9456David Woods563 391-3702

Service CoordinatorsR.Ernest Ledjte563 785-6182Tom Lemons563 359-3201

Honor GuardJett Bork563 528-0636

Roger Granbois, Greg Paulline, John Lavelle, and Jett Bork marched in the Bettendorf 4th of July parade.

Edward J. GaudetVietnam Veterans of

America Commendation Medal

Membership Meeting Minutes for August 2010President Greg Paulline called the meeting to order at 1900 hours. A pledge of allegiance and a moment of silence for all POW/MIA and all those still serving our country in uniform was observed by the membership. Present were President Greg Paulline, Secretary John Lavelle, and Treasurer Harold Hansen. A short introduction of all members and visitors to our meeting followed. The meeting began with a short presentation by Iowa State VVA Council President Roy Hutchison. Roy came to the meeting to present Ed Gaudet with the Vietnam Veterans of America Commendation Medal. The medal has the following purpose. “The Vietnam Veterans of America Commendation Medal is the Corporations highest award, and it is awarded for outstanding, exemplary service to veterans, and the community. The purpose of the award is to recognize those members, Associate or Individual, who have demonstrated a sincere commitment to ideals, mission, and goals of the Corporation through their work.” Ed Gaudet’s work in serving our nation’s veterans and his particular concern for the Vietnam veteran were cited as the reason for this well deserved national award. The chapter had cake and coffee, thanks to Teri Paulline, to celebrate this award for Ed Gaudet. State Council President Hutchison also used this time to tell a little bit about the current state of the Iowa State Council. As has been the case in recent years, there are financial difficulties in Des Moines with the council. The VFW has closed their office in Des Moines and now more veterans are coming to the VVA office for their VSO services. There have been recent personnel changes in the office and there is an effort to find a replacement for the current telemarketing group to increase funding needed for the VSO office in Des Moines and the state council office. The minutes of the July meeting were accepted as published in the newsletter. Membership chair Larry Witt informed the members that we have again added members and now have 143 members in our chapter. Welcome to our newest VVA member, Dale Aikens. Honor Flight will conduct the 10th and 11th flights on September 7th and 8th and were very thankful for the donation of the local Quad City area and Clinton area HyVee to pay for a complete flight. The chapter honor guard was present at the HyVee announcement. Two more Honor Flights are scheduled for November. The chapter helped to fly an Iowa National Guard soldier home after his father was seriously injured in an accident. Unfortunately, the airline delays caused the soldier’s arrival to come after the father succumbed to these injuries. The soldier, Sgt. Cory Thomas was not able to get back before his father died. Col. Hapgood, community service officer for the Iowa National Guard was thankful of the chapter’s efforts to assist Sgt. Thomas and wishes to acknowledge those efforts in a press release. David Woods and Ed Guadet told the membership that this last quarter $155,000 more than in 2009 was awarded to 300 veterans from the VA for comp and pen claims. Member Ed Gilmore has received a prosthetic leg and will begin physical therapy soon. A ramp at his home is yet to be constructed, but is in the works. Patrick Kobelenske told the members that if anyone is in need of school supplies they should contact him at the ING Brady Street Armory. Lyle Peterson and Larry Witt visited Cathy Jordan at the Humility of Mary Homeless Shelter on 5th and Vine. The chapter voted to donate $600 to cover the cost of two veterans beds for two months. They are in need of crossword puzzle books and toiletry items. Jett Bork said that he could get them a supply of soap. Also, at the next meeting anyone can bring a plastic bag with clean clothing donations and he will get these items delivered to the homeless shelter. The shelter claims an 85% success ratio with helping veterans get jobs and housing. Patrick Kobelenske has been very busy assisting family members of the ING troops that have been deployed and that it is not an easy task for these young families. There have been two suicides within the dependents so far. The chapter donated $200 to Sarah Oliver and the Homeless Outreach program, members are asked to bring can goods to the next meeting to help with the food pantry. Retired Bettendorf Police Officer, Tom Lemons has been (continued on next page)

(Minutes continued from previous page)helping as a Veterans Service Representative at the Iowa City VA Hospital, thanks Tom for your continued service to America. The chapter will serve a lunch at the Stand Down on September 18th. Time to arrive for those members who will be assisting is 10:00 A.M. The chapter will provide brats and hot dogs as well as the condiments and buns for this annual event, Roger Granbois will perform this service. Paul “Frenchy” Eaves will be in charge of security at Stand Down and is in need of volunteers, contact him at (309) 235-3574. Submitted by John P. Lavelle, chapter secretary.

THE GREATEST GENERATION REDUX

When the war is unpopular,When the struggle is not supported,

The truly brave still standout.SUPPORT OUR TROOPS

I have always felt a little bitter by the title of Tom Brokaw’s book, The Greatest Generation. Bitter because I was a member of a generation that fought in an unpopular war, bitter because when I returned from that war I had to almost hide the fact that I had taken part in it, not because of anything I had done, but because the media’s presentation of that war left us in a light that was far less than flattering. Vietnam war veterans have been fighting that image for decades. I know now what made that generation that endured World War II the greatest. It wasn’t all about those who were in the line of fire. It was those who bore the burden at home. We as a nation were at war and those at home had to bear the economic burden as well as the trauma of the war. We are at war today. Our economy has suffered and people are upset about it, we have tea parties ranting about change and the two major parties want to place the blame on each other. It is time for America to quit whining and become a power again, or prepare to become a dying nation of crybabies. Suck it up America! Get the job done. We have young men and women who love this country and are willing to pay the ultimate price for our survival. Back during World War II we had great military leaders and young men and women who were willing to pay the price for freedom. We still have that, what we don’t have in this country today are those who are at home who are willing to bear that burden. We want quick and easy solutions to change the economy and make life easy. During a war life is not easy, not for the troops in the field or the people at home. The challenge now is to become like that greatest generation. Those who are in the front lines are still like the men and women who fought before them and are being led by the same quality of men and women who fought to preserve our nation. The difference is in those who sit back at home and choose to be smug skeptical critics, rising above the brave men and women who truly are the greatest of their generation. Each generation is faced with its particular challenge and this generation is now facing a great challenge. Those in uniform are following a long tradition of standing tall when called upon. Let all Americans learn from that and stand tall behind them. God Bless America. God keep her safe.John LavelleEditorial

Edward J. GaudetChapter #776 Bettendorf, Iowa

Vietnam Veterans of America Commendation Medal Recipient

On August 25, 2010 Edward J. Gaudet received the Vietnam Veterans of America Commendation Medal from Iowa State Council President Roy Hutchison. Chapter President Greg Paulline obtained the award while attending the Leadership conference in Orlando, Florida and contacted the state council president who was more than willing to travel to Bettendorf, Iowa to present the award to Ed.Ed Gaudet served in the US Army from 1962-1966 He was a Combat Medic and served in this position in Vietnam from 1965 to 1966 with the 1st Infantry Division. Ed received the Combat Medic Badge for his service, and says this is still what makes him the proudest.Ed has lived and breathed veterans and veteran’s assistance for more than 20 years. He gives his time daily and has upheld the VVA’s mission of “Never again will one generation of veterans abandon another.” Ed exemplifies what a Veteran should be and he is extremely deserving of the Vietnam Veterans of America Commendation Medal.Ed was a charter member of Chapter 299 in Rock Island, Illinois in 1986. He served as Vice President and President of Chapter 299 as well serving on the Board of Directors for 6 years. He also served as the Chapter Illinois State Representative for Chapter 299. In 1996 Ed was the founding member of Chapter 776 and it’s first President. Ed has served as president two separate terms since it began. He has been on the Board of Directors each year that Chapter 776 has existed. He has served as chair of most standing committees, including Membership, Community Service and Veterans Service. He is a member of the 776 Honor Guard. Ed has served as the Chapter’s Iowa State Council Representative, since 1996. He is a past Iowa State Council President, serving 2 terms; he has been on the Iowa State Council Board of Directors the entire time. Ed has received almost every award given by Chapter 776 many times. He has received the Member of the Year, Community Service Award, and VSO of the year. He has been nominated for National Member of the Year. Ed has been an Accredited Veteran Service Officer since 2003 and has served at the VA Hospital, Iowa City, Iowa and as Veterans Affairs Director for Clinton County for 6 years. Ed has assisted more than 1500 veterans and as a result won awards exceeding $2,000,000. He has enlisted, trained and mentored 8 other Veteran Service Officers since he began. In 2005 Ed helped to organize the Vietnam Veterans of America, Chapter 947 in Fort Madison, Iowa. He has remained a mentor to that Chapter, and trained their past president to be a Veterans Service Officer.Ed initiated the effort to change the name of local “Old Highway 61” to become the Veterans Memorial Highway. Ed served on the committee to develop the first Homeless Veteran Standown in the Quad City Area in 2002. He has remained an active member of this committee.

Roger and

Linda’s

Summer

Fiesta

Food,

Friends,

Fun, and

a dog

show!

Clip this and post it where friends, family, neighbors, or co-workers might view it. We need to have people aware of this fund raiser so that we have bidders for all the items we have.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS MEETINGThe Board of Directors meet on Wednesday September 15, 2010 at the American Legion Hall on 35th Street in Davenport. Members present were President Greg Paulline, Treasurer Harold Hanson, Secretary John Lavelle, Director Ed Gaudet, Director Art Heyderman, Director Mike DeGeeter, Director Larry Witt, and Director David Woods. Also in attendance was Maggie Gaudet. President Paulline spoke about the need to assure we are in compliance with the the national VVA guidelines and indicated that after some research on the matter we are in fact in compliance with the standards. Our article of incorporation are on file with the state of Iowa and our 990 N has been filed with the IRS. A discussion concerned how often the board should meet and it was decided at the meeting that a quarterly meeting would suffice. In most cases that meeting could take place one half hour before a scheduled membership meeting. If needed a meeting might be called to undertake any issues that might arise in the future. In a related issue it was felt that the control of the board of directors should remain as it currently exist, that is that this chapter is a chapter that is controlled by its membership and it should continue to operate in that manner. Another issue for the board concerned establishing a possible guideline for our charitable donations. A committee will be established and during the September meeting volunteers will be sought from the membership to join this committee. How will the donation meet our mission as a veterans association? How much money is appropriate? David Woods will chair this committee and Ed Gaudet will serve on it. The goal is to have an odd number of members to avoid a stalemate in any voting. Another concern that was discussed dealt with membership. The Iowa State VVA Council has had its budget slashed from VVA National from $20,000 to $10,000 and this will create even further problems for those VSOs working in DesMoines. It was felt that our chapter should lead the rest of the state chapters in an effort to help raise money to sustain the State Council Office in DesMoines. How do we attract new members and how do we retain members? It was decided that we would offer new memberships for $7.76. Any Vietnam veteran or era veteran can join our chapter and the first year membership will be $7.76, a number we are all familiar with. No one will be excluded from membership because of any financial hardship. VVA National President is very concerned with Veterans Health Care. On our web site is a link to the Veterans Health Initiative. As active members of VVA we all know about Agent Orange. How much does the public know about this? What about those Vietnam veterans who are not active members of a veterans group? The need exists to have an educational program to share with our community. President Paulline discussed having groups present the information about the health problems of Vietnam veterans to local nursing classes or at health fairs. Besides AO there are many Vietnam veterans that have Hepatitis B, as well as other health problems from various environmental factors. A discussion related to the Eagle’s Nest group that is attempting to create a homeless shelter dwelling in Davenport took place. In general the view was that this group is “reinventing the wheel.” There are groups like the Humility of Mary Shelter and the VA Homeless Outreach program that are performing this service in our community successfully. We as a chapter will not at this time make any effort to align with this group. It was felt that they need to have a fully developed plan for how they will operate and how they will provide services for veterans. Iowa City has a program called “Shelter House” that could help direct Eagle’s Nest if they choose to contact them and learn how they have evolved into a successful program. It was felt that at the present we can best assist homeless veterans through the Humility of Mary Shelter and the VA Homeless Outreach program. The chapter has equipment that is currently stored by members. It was felt that perhaps a permanent location for these items could be found. Members will be asked at the meeting if such an arrangement might be created where we could store chapter items. The meeting was adjourned. Submitted by John P. Lavelle, chapter secretary.

Bring can goods and non-perishable food s u p p l i e s t o t h e September meeting to h e l p w i t h t h e VA Homeless Outreach Food Pantry.

Jett Bork will be accepting clothing for the homeless

veterans at the Humility of Mary Shelter. Bring clothing

in a plastic bag. Also any crossword puzzle books or sudoku puzzle books would

be appreciated.

We might want to send a get well card to a couple of our members. We can all offer our prayers for their quick recovery.Ed Gilmore302 11th Ave.Silvis, IL 61282-1866Lyle Peterson2 Vista CourtDavenport, IA 52806-4333