LAHARPE — A pair of upcoming events will help shine the spotlight on LaHarpe’s Veterans of Foreign Wars post.
On Saturday, LaHarpe will host the District 3 VFW Fall Conference, the second straight year LaHarpe was chosen as the host site. (Prior to last year, the post had never hosted such an event since it was chartered in 1946.)
District Commander Charlie Cravens and District Auxiliary President Charlene Wilkinson will be on hand to preside over the meetings.
The next event will be at 5 p.m. Oct. 8, when Sandi Onstwedder, National VFW Auxiliary president, pays a visit.
The visit will be the first such visit Onstwedder has made to this part of the country, and the first ever national auxiliary president to visit LaHarpe.
BOTH EVENTS are the latest occasions to highlight the rebirth of the LaHarpe post.
Post Commander Doug Northcutt noted the post almost folded a few years back. “Heck, this building was for sale when I got here.”
Since then, a concerted effort to draw in new members has been wildly successful, growing to 96 members today.
With that growth, and the LaHarpe post’s growing reputation for civic engagement, it was declared an All-State Post for 2020, another first in LaHarpe.
On top of membership retention, all-state designation goes to posts that exhibit active membership in terms of community service projects, participation in VFW events throughout the year, and through support projects with law enforcement, fire and/or emergency medical personnel, and with local teachers.
The VFW also offers scholarships to students through essay contests.
NORTHCUTT noted the difficulty in remaining active in the age of COVID.
While normally expecting a large turnout for such events as national commander visits and district meetings, he expects attendance this year to be limited, “and I don’t blame them.”
Post members meet at 6 p.m. on the second Monday of every month, although the Oct. 12 meeting will not be held because of the two upcoming events, Northcutt said.
Because of the ongoing pandemic, Northcutt plans to take full advantage of the VFW building’s space, “and just spread everybody out,” he said.
